Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is the world's largest video game publisher and has proven how successful video game product placement can be. The company reports ad revenues are up 60-percent this year.
EA landed a multimillion-dollar product placement deal with Intel and McDonald's for The Sims Online. In the game, players use computers featuring those familiar Intel tones and they can buy virtual McDonald's food for their hungry sims.
EA's Need for Speed Underground 2 features product placement with companies like Best Buy, Cingular Wireless, Old Spice and Burger King.
The Sims 2, the new generation of The Sims, could easily be the game of the year. The first version of The Sims followed up with seven hugely popular expansion packs. The Sims 2 is already set to follow those footsteps, leaving the door wide open for product placement deals. EA already has an Alienware computer available for players to download and use in The Sims 2.
Alienware's also running a contest with several different video game publishers to purchase a copy of a particular title, including The Sims 2, and you can enter to win your own Alienware computer.
Ubisoft is currently using a Palm PDA in Splinter Cell. The company plans on using even more in-game advertising in the next Tom Clancy Splinter Cell release.
Vivendi Universal Games has actually run into the problem of denying advertisers space within its Leisure Suit Larry title. Between alcohol companies wanting their products in the game and companies wanting the characters to wear their shoes, Vivendi drew the line and said no. The company will release future titles that use in-game product placement.
Advertisers are now figuring video game advertising into their budget. Money previously spent on TV and print is now being redirected to in-game advertising.
The interest in product placement in video games is increasing and the technology is already advancing to new levels. Massive Inc. is releasing new technology that gives advertisers a way to update their ads even after the game's release.
You could easily see the ads changing in your game every day even though you bought the game six months ago. Advertisers have the opportunity to tailor your advertising based on timely advertising needs like the latest movie release or base the advertising on where you live.
As the technology advances, your thirteen-year-old playing the latest video game may see in-game advertising strictly geared toward her. For example, an ad for acne cream. When you play the same game a few hours later, you see an ad for a hair loss product.