Sponsored Videos Gaining Ground In Video Advertising For Online Gaming

Some interesting information that was sent to me recently pertains to how favorable online game players are toward sponsored videos so that they can continue to play a game for free. Then again, the study was done by SponsorPay and they are a provider of that sort of video advertising service so, you'll need a fairly strong grain of salt to swallow this data.

Here's what SponsorPay is all about:

SponsorPay is the leading global cross-platform advertising solution for the monetization of premium content or virtual currency on social networks, virtual worlds, mobile apps as well as online games and services.

So you can see how that might affect the numbers of a survey. When will everyone learn that you need to have an independent third party collect this sort of research? I think it's a German thing because most of the German companies I get email from seem to always do their own research. Well, we can't very well put 100% faith in that, now can we?

The Methodology

Here's another example of doing your own research. Their whole methodological statement was: The study was conducted in November 2011 in the form of a survey among 10,000 SponsorPay users in the US and Western Europe.

Research Results:

• Consumers Enjoy Watching Branded Video To Earn Virtual Currency And Would Like More

72% welcome the opportunity to earn virtual currency by watching videos, indicating this is a
preferred means of engagement with brands. Furthermore, 87% of users who have watched videos
to earn virtual currency are eager to see more video offers.

I wonder how they're categorizing 'eager.' I mean, considering other ways to get free virtual currency, which usually involves signing up for some program or paying for something somewhere, I suppose I would be more interested in just watching videos as well.

•  Users Prefer To Interact With Brands Within Games Instead Of On TV

Consumers continue to become less receptive to advertising on traditional channels — 84% of
users would rather watch video advertising in games than on TV.

Again, this is because it is incentivized and the gamers are getting something in return. I'd like to see a comparison of TV ads, online video and videos in games for virtual currency. I bet that last one beats them all because of the incentives.

• Brands Receive Positive Spill-Over Effects From Sponsoring Video

There are a number of benefits that brands reap from placing branded video content in games:
• 70% recall a brand that has sponsored virtual currency.
• 61% prefer to buy products from a brand that sponsors virtual currency.
• 54% would recommend a brand that sponsors virtual currency to their friends.
• More than 50% regard brands that advertise in games as being innovative.

My Thoughts

Well, take these numbers as you will, but it's hard to take them at face value without any third party interaction and vetting of them. It's easy to make claims from research when no one else is involved or looking over your shoulder. Plus, since this is a study about the actual business they are involved in, do you think they would ever report any kind of negative numbers? Neither do I.