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Take-Two signs in-game ad deal

Double Fusion to provide both static and dynamic in-game ads for "up to nine" 2K and 2K Sports games through 2008.

Take-Two Interactive and Double Fusion today announced that they have reached an agreement to have the in-game ad firm handle the advertising duties for "up to nine" 2K and 2K Sports titles releasing in 2007 and 2008.

Under the agreement, Double Fusion will handle all of the static advertising (ads that are in the game when it ships and never change) for the North American and European releases of the games. Double Fusion will also handle Take-Two's dynamic in-game advertising (ads that are regularly updated and refreshed in online games after they have shipped) for PCs and "certain console platforms except for the Xbox and Xbox 360." However, parts of the agreement surrounding dynamic ads are conditional on those other console platforms even supporting dynamic ads.

"With respect to dynamic ads, we can only serve dynamic ads as platforms authorize that," Double Fusion CEO and president Jonathan Epstein told GameSpot. "And right now, Sony and Nintendo, who have been very busy launching platforms, are still formulating their policies in that regard. So our arrangement is contingent on those platforms authorizing in-game advertising in the first place, and then authorizing Double Fusion as a vendor. We're hopeful that during the time of the deal...we'll see such authorizations and approvals."

Epstein said Microsoft has communicated its intention to make the Xbox 360 platform open to third-party advertising firms. (The software giant recently acquired the in-game ad network Massive, which inked a deal with 2K Sports for dynamic ads in MLB 2K6.) Epstein said he expects Microsoft to open up the Xbox platforms to third-party ad vendors in about a year. He added that Double Fusion didn't pursue the rights to dynamically serve ads for Microsoft's consoles so as not to limit Take-Two from that potential revenue stream.

115 Comments

  • _Sam_

    Posted Dec 14, 2006 5:36 pm GMT

    I hate in-game advertising

  • knuspar

    Posted Dec 6, 2006 2:17 pm GMT

    Like Irve says :

    Ahhhh .. .. interactive ads .. THE FUTURE !!! now where are the lower game prices !!


    I totally agree .. GIVE LOWER GAME PRICES !

  • JSharpe_187

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 4:41 pm GMT

    while I like most of take-two's games, I gotta say, they sold out to the corporations just like the white sox

  • Irve

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 2:26 pm GMT

    Ahhhh .. .. interactive ads .. THE FUTURE !!! now where are the lower game prices !!

  • feudel01

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 2:03 pm GMT

    Sports is fine but i wouldnt mind ads in some war games as long as they are not right in my face

  • LexLas

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 12:50 pm GMT

    Good,, more advertising.

  • nappan

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 12:47 pm GMT

    "XOXIXO
    everyone watches tv (which most people pay for) and there are ads...same deal "

    You pay for cable/sattelite, not over-the-air television, and while you're right that most people (myself included) do pay that... it's different. In fact, cable "premium" channels illustrate the point: you pay a subscription and are not advertised to. Think of this very website... pay a small monthly fee, and no ads. Sometimes ad revenue keeps the price of common products down, but in the case of games the cost to consumers RISES while the ad revenue rises. It's fairly unique.

  • Dweed1

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 12:03 pm GMT

    There better not be ads in the next Civilization game

  • SpruceCaboose

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 12:00 pm GMT

    I don't mind in-game ads if its tastefully done and is unobtrusive. Ads can make games more realistic, such as posters on walls in Rainbow Six, or billboards in racing games. However, when ads are done like in Fight Night 3, where the BK King is a corner-man, that is where it becomes a distraction. Some companies have proved to have been good at in-game ads, companies like EA are too gready with them. Hopefully companies can find a good way to incorporate these ads. If I start seeing BK ads in Halo or Coke ads in Zelda, though, I will be disgusted...

  • kens05

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 11:58 am GMT

    Just take my money

  • Rokin1

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 11:54 am GMT

    We'll see how this will work out

  • AndyTSJ

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 11:35 am GMT

    I would love to see dynamic ads in a franchise game like NBA 2k7. Where you play a game and there might be some ad for an upcoming Thursday night TNT game... or some new McDonalds ad. I dunno, it would just add to keeping the game fresh.

  • XOXIXO

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 11:04 am GMT

    everyone watches tv (which most people pay for) and there are ads...same deal

  • nappan

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:40 am GMT

    The reality of dynamic advertising in games is that it will be the only medium in which the consumer recieves no benefit for being used to generate continual ad revenue. Remember, I'm not talking about product placement (static ads)... television, which is based on ad revenue is a free product... billboards on the highway are dynamic ads and you don't pay for them. Games on the other hand see rising shelf prices AND the introduction of ongoing ad revenue from the date of sale ad infinitum... with no benefit to the consumer in return for being used as that source of income. It's a first, and a rather unpleasant one.

  • Cypher_VR

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:38 am GMT

    ads should get you free stuff like reduced price for upcoming games

  • rta

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:36 am GMT

    I agree DarkSaber2k.

  • TintedChimes

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:33 am GMT

    ads are fine if they're inconspicuous and it doesn't get into gameplay. Everyone one says ads should be in sports game or racing games but I have a better idea, how about just put all the ads on a separate disk so I can throw it away and never look at them. Seriously, I pay nice money for a game that throws me into a virtual world. I don't want ads popping up when I'm in a fantasy land or sniping. How annoying would it be if you're on Halo 2 and all of a sudden the freaking Burger King King comes out and snipes you and says "Eat a Whopper!" Well, he won't say it because he never talks, but how annoying will that be. Yeah, sports games are fine because heck, they're about to put endorsements on uniforms, just wait. But sometimes, enough is enough. I don't want a high definition rendition of a billboard ad or for that matter, an ugly billboard that's an eyesore to the othewise pristine environment. To those that say, just don't buy games with ads, well, its becoming industry standard and its annoying. I guess I'll just have to go homebrew for everything if they keep this up.

  • runstalker

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:30 am GMT

    What worries me most are the mechanisms used to serve and monitor the ads. Not only do they consume video memory, but in the case of several games, there's a mechanism that detects how often and how long a player looks at the ad. It literally detects if X-Y camera position fixates on a camera view that includes the ad, and it sends that data back to the ad server. This little mechanism running in the background consumes CPU clock cycles and/or network bandwidth. They can tell me it's minimal or that the next-gen systems have more than enough horsepower to manage, but the more ads they put in and the more detailed they get, the more CPU and bandwidth it's going to consume. And that could affect gameplay. To hell with that.

  • conradb319

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:23 am GMT

    I'd like to point out that you don't actually have to buy games. You can rent them. And with current trends you can rent them indefinitley and not worry about late fees. There is no reason to spend $50 on a game. Also, with some online rentals, you can eventual get the game at a discounted price with the box and everything. There is no need to spend large amounts of money on video games.

  • ghsacidman

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:21 am GMT

    The in-game adverts in G.R.A.W. sucked. You running through a war torn poverty stricken country and BAM! A ad for the New Dodge Charger on a billboard, cause starving people can totally afford a Dodge Charger! Rediculous. If there is going to be an in game ad, the game should be discounted... alot, or have a really great online service so I can atleast pretend they are using the ad money to run better online servers. Anyway, someone needs to make a list of all the games coming out that have ads.... so we can boycott them.

  • Redline65

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:18 am GMT

    If a game is $50 without an in-game advertising campaign, it should be $40 with the adverts. In-game ads should help defray bottom-line retail costs to the consumer, or in the case of MMOs, should off-set the cost of subscription. Publishers need to respect their players enough to do this.

    This is a way to increase profits for the publishers, not lower the price of the games for consumers.

  • Jaeme

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:12 am GMT

    Traditionally advertising was used as a means to lower the price of the product, thus advertising supported tv was "free" tv. This should also be true of games. I don`t want unscrupulous greed hounds like EA to simply ad out my pass time to increase their revenue stream. If they`re getting something for subjecting me to ads then I should too; cheaper games. The even bigger worry to me though is that we all know how advertisers affect editorial content in newspapers and on tv. I don`t want some ad exec deciding on the content of games. Its bad enough that we would have to have games full of ads without the content being dumbed down to suit THEIR needs when I`m the one paying $50 for a game for MY needs.

  • Lord_Bafford

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:04 am GMT

    As long as they are not annoying and do not "pop up" when you don't want to seen them....I don't care

  • runstalker

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:04 am GMT

    If a game is $50 without an in-game advertising campaign, it should be $40 with the adverts. In-game ads should help defray bottom-line retail costs to the consumer, or in the case of MMOs, should off-set the cost of subscription. Publishers need to respect their players enough to do this.

  • DarkSaber2k

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 10:01 am GMT

    F**k this!

  • cjcr_alexandru

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 9:16 am GMT

    As long as the ads are appropriate and just add to the realism of the game.. fine with me.

  • LordAndrew

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 9:12 am GMT

    Keep it in sports games. Keep it out of fantasy games and whatnot.

  • rta

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 9:12 am GMT

    Sweet! I love ads. I don't get enough everywhere I look. Cool part is I get to pay for them. ROCKIN'!!!!!

    If we don't want the ads we don't buy the games. Problem? We will buy the games anyway, therefore telling these companies that we don't mind and we don't care so keep 'em coming.

    The future of in-game advertising is in YOUR hands. Period.

  • Gamepro2421

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 9:03 am GMT

    what happens when they start putting ads in games that are supposed to immerse you into a whole nother world like WoW or Guild Wars? what if you were strolling around Ironforge and saw a big billboard over the auction house with a picture of a new Nvidia graphics card? kinda takes away from the fantasy aspect of the game and throws you back to reality.

  • Kravyn81

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:58 am GMT

    I don't mind ads as long as they are placed in appropriate games. For example, sports games (especially NASCAR). That's OK, because it's just like in real life. However, I don't want to see a billboard for Burger King in Halo 3. Ya feel me?

  • sieg6529

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:45 am GMT

    In sports games, I'm in agreement with in-game advertising. It's in the actual sports broadcasts, so why not? However, I hope this doesn't open the floodgates to Pepsi spots in MMORPGs.

  • Sheiko

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:17 am GMT

    Hmmm sounds like a win win if they still manage to go along with TheBuck27's idea.

  • MrPMPisBeefy

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:15 am GMT

    I think this is a great idea as long as it's used properly. Being a business student i have always wondered why more companies didn't take this route. Hahaha maybe i was talking too loud one day and someone overheard. I don't know but used in the right context, these ads will only add more realism to the proper game.

  • TheBuck27

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:07 am GMT

    I'm fine with ads in most games as long as they continue to be where they are now, just harmlessly in the background, on occasion even funny due to it's randomness. If they started to interrupt the game with commercials like cutscenes, then that'd be a problem. Playing a sports game and someone calls a time out then it cuts to a Circuit City commercial, then lets you continue playing the game.

  • Maquis_UK

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 8:03 am GMT

    Microsoft has communicated its intention to make the Xbox 360 platform open to third-party advertising firms... YUK!!!! is anyone realising yet why most peeps hate m$ and don't want their adware??

    maybe its a good thing that take2 dont do nintendo games. keep your ads, i wont be buying them.

  • fordies

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 7:50 am GMT

    I dont mind ads in games but they have to be reasonable and suited to that enviroment like minsk pointed out a pepsi ad in oblivion would look stupid but in sports games i want ads to make it look more authentic or games like GTA or R6:Vegas where the game is set in a urban enviroment and in a time period where advertising is everywhere or something along those lines.

  • Minsk_bg

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 7:32 am GMT

    as long as in-game ads stay within the boundaries of such game genres as sports or some shooters, they don't cause any bothers. Contrary, they even make the games more realistic, if only the action of those games is in our world. BUT they totally don't fit into RPG's, adventures and other types of games. I just couldn't imagine seeing an ad, for example, in Oblivion, that would be ridiculous and way out of the game content, a complete distortion of it. If this were to happen, I definitely wouldn't buy such games...

    Though, it may happen, 'cause money drives the world, doesn't it...

  • -_-Nintendo-_-

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 7:18 am GMT

    I like paying for Ad's. It's not like I can ge free Ad's from TV or anything.

  • CheddarLimbo

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 7:03 am GMT

    Here's a great send up of ads in games.

    http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=124

  • CheddarLimbo

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 7:01 am GMT

    The only thing that ad companies respond to is the Ch'CHING of your cash.

    If this sort of thing really bothers you, then get educated about what games are involved, don't buy them, and then TELL THE COMPANY why you didn't purchase their product.

    We're mostly talking about sports games here, though, and if you've ever watched a football game on television it's completely laden with advertising. It isn't abrasive to see it in the game, because in a way it makes it seem more legitimate as a representation of an actual game.

    When Link starts drinking Pepsi, then we've got problems.

  • Rockdoctor

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 6:54 am GMT

    I like in game ads. Especially in sports games. Makes for a more realistic game experience.

    People are just complaining for the sake of complaining. Sure lower priced games would be better, duh ....but that would be the case with or without the ads.

  • IsmirZone

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 6:46 am GMT

    I don't understand why are we gamers taking this crap. We all have something to say. We need to do something if these games are with ads and still are the same prices. If the PS3 and X360 games are with ads and not 39.99 or even less then this is not right.

  • auntbessie

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 6:22 am GMT

    It was only a matter of time, can't see any benefit for the gamer though. It'll merely serve as a subsidy to the developers when creating the games, hell will freeze over before they reduce the price of the games. The only potential benefit I can see is increased funding might enable them to meet the actual game deadlines for a change, rather than disappoint by forever putting release dates back, then back again.

  • axillia

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 6:13 am GMT

    So does this mean that prices for games will drop?

  • princeofgames90

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 6:02 am GMT

    Why do i care about some Cr#py ads

  • Zumafire

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 5:35 am GMT

    It was bound to happen eventually. It's about money and companies need to constantly come up with new ways to reach people. I doubt it will ever be as crazy as some of you think. Like when your playing Fable you'll be able to use Coke as an energy source. Thats just plain silly but if any of you have played TW PGA the last few years you've seen Target ads and the like. Hardly spoiled the game for me.

  • xion2k4

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 5:31 am GMT

    as long as they don't delay games even further in the UK because they have to get region spesific ads in games and it dosn't destroy the feel of a game im all for it but if theres ads in my video games they better drop the price coz im not paying the same price coz thats BS

  • Cloud737

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 5:26 am GMT

    As long as it doesn`t cause longer loading times or ruin the game atmosphere (like seeing a coke ad inside an alien spaceship), then I think it`s ok.
    But I`m a bit worried on the dynamic ads. Their nature implies that the game has to download from the internet the new ads, which will probably cause the game to pause while loading the ads. If that`s the case, then I don`t want ads.

  • lordxymor

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 5:26 am GMT

    If watching ads earn you credits that enable trade-in for extra content or allow a reduced game price, I'm all for it.

    Maybe ads can pay entirely for games like they pay for TV shows.

  • KingofTrolls

    Posted Dec 5, 2006 4:22 am GMT

    WE INTERRUPT YOUR GAME TO SHOW YOU THE NEWEST MACK DADDY BURGER FROM BURGER KING TO MAKE YOU EVEN MORE FAT. OK BACK TO GAME. 5 MINUTES LATER ANOTHER AD BROUGHT TO YOU BY MCDONALDS.

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