LONDON, UK: Bidstack Group, the native in-game advertising group, announced the launch of a new ad format for brands with its new and innovative ‘in-menu’ offering.
The mobile format offers clickable display banners that allow brands to deliver integrated ads into game menus, user interfaces and loading screens.
The ads, which blend seamlessly into the game’s user interface, can be placed by advertisers on a programmatic basis and create a highly viewable and interactive touchpoint for brands looking to connect with the gaming audience.
The new ad format respects the gaming experience by putting players in control of the interaction. The ad appears as an in-game banner alongside other menu items and players can click on the ad to discover more.
For game developers, in-menu ads mean that they can now run integrated campaigns across two separate locations within the game with Bidstack; backing up the brand awareness campaign appearing in the gameplay with clickable interactive ads in menus, loading screens and other user interfaces.
The new format opens an entirely new revenue stream for game developers globally. Bidstack’s gaming partners will also be able to monitor ad performance via their analytics and reporting service, AdConsole, which will track impressions, clicks and revenue generation.
A number of games publishers within Bidstack’s portfolio have already signed up and integrated the in-menu SDK including Motionlab Interactive. The first campaigns are expected to run in the coming weeks, brands turning their attention towards performance to drive conversion as we move towards the holiday season and into 2022.
The Board believes this development marks a significant achievement in implementing Bidstack’s development strategy set out in the 2020 Annual Report and Accounts published on 26 March 2021. The build out of these programmatic technology features and an open exchange marketplace was a key deliverable from our product development team.
Alan l’Anson, Head of Apps at Motionlab Interactive said: “I am really happy to be adding in-menu ads to complement the in-game ads already provided by Bidstack in our games. The gaming experience is respected with these alternative monetisation solutions, and they help to support user retention. The integration process for the in-menu solution was smooth and simple and customer service continues to be exceptional from the Bidstack team.”
James Draper, CEO of Bidstack said: “I believe the launch of our in-menu ad format is a material step change in how Bidstack is able to generate cash by having “always-on” open marketplace revenues for the first time.
“The work our publisher acquisition and technology teams have put into this launch has meant we already have multiple game studios signed-up to this new monetisation product.
“We expect to be able to announce the release of other ad formats in the near future which we expect will further add to the significant growth in intrinsic in-game advertising revenues we are currently experiencing. Our team is highly motivated as its great work over the last few years is now translating into revenue growth across multiple territories, genres, advertising verticals and products.”
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