Google’s Next Move – Video Game Ads?

Google’s Next Move – Video Game Ads?

Since AdWords was launched in 2001, Google has expanded to image ads, video ads, and print ads, and has frequently been rumored to be entering radio and television. While many think that television ads (ala Spot Runner) could be Google’s next major move, they may be neglecting a potentially larger opportunity: in-game video game advertising.

Earlier this year Massive Incorporated, a video game advertising network, announced a landmark deal with Major League Baseball and 2K Sports to provide dynamic advertising in the popular video game Major League Baseball 2K6. According to their press release, “Massive’s Network and technology allow MLB Advanced Media and 2K Sports titles to leverage dynamic advertising for ever-fresh brand messaging in their games, mirroring the rapidly changing and expanding advertising opportunities in the live action sports industry.”

Why Should Google Care?

The Entertainment Software Association put U.S. sales of video game hardware and software at .3 billion back in 2004, a figure that rivals Hollywood box office revenue. In-game video game advertising is nothing new for the booming game industry – large companies have been buying static advertisements in games for years. What is new is the expansion of online gaming into the mainstream. Once reserved for only PC Gamers, console gamers have now discovered a whole new world of competition over a broadband connection.

In a recent interview with TechNewsWorld, EA’s John Schappert, who oversees the largest interactive game studio in the world, was asked about in-game advertising: “In-game ad integration is a growing business where we see both advertisers and consumers looking for more. It’s an additional revenue stream that is still small, but growing. There’s the potential for scalability in this area with dynamically-served ads. It’s still in the early stages [in terms of] how in-game ads will grow in significance.”

Starting with Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s PS2, and continuing into the next generation of online gaming with Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Nintendo’s Wii, and Sony’s PS3, it has become a virtual certainty that nearly all gamers will be playing while connected to a broadband connection. With that broadband connection comes an advertising opportunity that’s hard to ignore.

Is History Repeating Itself?

The potential flaw in what Massive Incorporated does is that their ad network still only includes the large advertisers. Massive’s website gives no specific information regarding how to purchase advertising, only mentioning that “blue-chip” advertisers can work with their “veteran” sales team to start an account. I think it’s safe to say that small businesses aren’t their target market. So while they are implementing dynamic ads, those ads are still only affordable to larger businesses. Anyone familiar with internet advertising can see the potential for history to repeat itself.

Way back in 1996, long before Overture (now Yahoo! Search Marketing) and Google AdWords, a company called DoubleClick pioneered website advertising. Their downfall, however, was that they required a formal sales contract, limiting their potential client base to only large companies. Overture and AdWords made it easy for the small advertiser and small site owner to participate in their ad networks, essentially opening their service to anyone on the web. Several years later, one would think that Google is keeping a watchful eye on what’s going on over at Massive Incorporated. Massive may be the first to enter the market, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that the small business owner remains shut out. Could Google make Massive the next DoubleClick?

How Would Google Do It

There’s no doubt that with the best programmers in the world Google is capable of developing and improving upon the technology that Massive has. It’s also not hard to imagine advertisers paying per thousand impressions (PPM) for their text or image ads to be shown in specific games, much like they do now for specific sites. The tough part for Google, however, would be the distribution of those ads.

As opposed to signing up websites to display their ads by copying some code on to their site, Google would have to work with game programmers throughout the development process. This would be much more time consuming and would be a much larger risk for Google. In the same way that Massive signed the contract with 2K, Google would have to sign large contracts with game developers and work with them for several months to integrate their ads.

This enforces the fact that the main difference between what happened with DoubleClick and what could happen with video games is that it would probably be more work for Google to distribute their ads over multiple channels (i.e. more games). Since each game is programmed differently, there is no game equivalent to the JavaScript used in all AdSense ads. Every game would need to be tailored to Google’s ad network individually. Difficult: yes. Impossible for Google: no way.

When Will They Do It?

In my opinion it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. The potential revenue from the gaming industry is too big for Google to ignore. Oh, and if you still aren’t convinced, consider this: Microsoft, one of Google’s main competitors, also produces the Xbox 360. If Microsoft decided to integrate their newly launched adCenter into Xbox games, would it really surprise anyone if Google countered by announcing a deal with Sony or Nintendo to integrate in-game dynamic advertising for the PS3 or the Wii?

The Gaming Laptop Computer Enthusiast

The Pc Gaming Laptop Computer Enthusiast

To communicate with your organisation, pals as well as to receive and also deliver info, people bring their laptops. In that method they could access the internet, have conferences, and also numerous various other features that their computer can do back at the workplace. We currently see that this convenient gadget has actually come to be an essential part of our culture, simply like the mobile phone. Modern technology makes it possible also to link cordless or using a cellular phone as a transmitter.

You can conserve quite money by getting computer system components at truly economical rates and also construct your very own computer laptop. There are numerous factors why you would want to acquire inexpensive utilized laptops. The main factor is obviously that a brand-new laptop computer is just too costly, particularly if you want a laptop that is specifically made to video gaming online. If you wish to find a low-cost used laptop, do the research study and also you will certainly have several opportunities to get a large amount.

When acquiring refurbished laptops, you will have quick rate, tons of system memory, upgraded software program, upgraded technology as well as an inexpensive cost. Refurbished laptops function as brand-new they are simply a pair of years older than a new laptop computer. The only tool you might intend to update is the visuals cards.

The existing portable computer market is really strong and offer hundreds of selections from complete laptops, to portable media terminals, to ultra-portable PCs, to cell phones as well as you actually need to recognize what you are searching for previous to going out to acquire. Notebooks are one of the most mobile computer systems you could purchase. They are small as well as will be your finest associate when you are traveling about. And, they will certainly weight a whole lot less than the laptops you may have been made use of to. The state of the art, ultralight, ultra chic and extremely portable laptops are certainly a fine example of exactly what reducing edge technology suggests.

The suggestion of a real pc gaming laptop is a viable one, as well as lots of companies have actually used their devices onto the industry as proof of this. All the extra twin power as well as hyper threading will ultimately put some punch into laptops and specifically pc gaming laptops. Currently, as even more video games come on stream which could maximize all this new modern technology, you should expect your gaming enjoyment to increase.

Pc gaming laptops need the fastest processors readily available and reducing side graphics cards. If you will certainly utilize your computer system only for 3D pc gaming or establishing up an effective workstation that will certainly get on the majority of the time, then the most effective selection is possibly a desktop COMPUTER. The gaming laptop computer computers of today have big, crisp LCD displays, cutting edge video cards and also full-size keyboards and also joystick choices.

Apple Powerbook – Is It Better Than The Other Laptops?

Apple Powerbook – Is It Better Than The Other Laptops?

There has been a long standing debate as to whether Mac laptops are better than PCs. Owners of Mac laptops say yes. Many owners of other brands hate Mac laptops and vehemently say no. Let’s compare the Apple powerbook to other brands based on a set of features.

Processors:

Powerbooks are now capable of using the same Intel processors as other laptops, so processor speed isn’t really an issue anymore.

Operating system:

This is probably the area with the most intense debates. The Mac OS X utilized in powerbooks uses a Unix platform to drive it’s system. Many programmers believe that this gives the powerbook an edge as it is a superior system, since it can handle a large number of applications running at once.

Software:

It’s true that much of the software being created is geared more towards PCs than powerbooks. In terms of productivity tools, powerbooks come with a complete set of software that is comparable to the typical Windows software. You can get web browsers, email tools and even antivirus software. However, if you plan on using Mac laptops for gaming, you may run into some problems. Many of the popular games just aren’t compatible with the powerbook. Even the graphics software, for which Mac laptops were famous, are now compatible with PCs.

Customization:

This may just be the area where PCs win outright. Just take a look at Dell. While you can customize your powerbook, up to a point, it’s nowhere near what companies like Dell and HP are offering.

Security:

Anyone would be a bit skeptical about an operating system which prompts you to download and install security updates to fix bugs on a regular basis. Windows isn’t the most secure system, as evidenced by the tens of thousand of viruses that attack it. The powerbook does have a more secure system, but there are viruses out there that attack Mac laptops, just nowhere as many.

Cost:

You only need to take a look at various company websites to know that powerbooks are more expensive than PCs. The powerbook operating system itself is cheaper so it may be an option if you’re building a system yourself.

So what’s the bottom line? Mac laptops ruled the roost, as it were, for many years. While the OS X operating system is still superior, PCs have come a long way in catching up. Unless you really have a strong preference, you might be better off getting a PC with a good antivirus program.