For the first time, revenue from in-game advertising was broken out in a report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (IAB), and the figures were not all that overwhelming.
The Canadian Online Advertising Revenue Survey (PDF) serves up actual 2009 results in addition to 2010 estimates. The report stated that 2009 revenue from Canadian in-game advertising was $3 million, or less than one percent of the year’s total of $1.82 billion.
Videogame advertising, as defined by IAB, “can range from an Advertiser buying some or all of the ad units in or around a game, to a 'Sponsored by' link to a custom-branded Game experience.”
Speaking to The Star, IAB President Paula Gignac called videogames “something of a walled garden” when it comes to marketing information.
She also painted game players as a tough bunch to market to, stating, “Gamers don’t want to be disturbed. They don’t want to click on the brands they just want to be exposed to them.”
In a related post over at the always excellent Escapist, marketing man JP Sherman listed a few of the blunders marketers typically make when attempting to target gamers, including making it difficult for gamers to trust marketers:
Gamers, for the prospect of getting something they value, will give marketers personal information, they'll download apps and they'll sign up for newsletters. But they want to know that marketers and game companies value their input and support. We, as marketers, make it an unpleasant experience.
