Microsoft is preparing in-game ads as one of the ways to earn more money from Xbox games. But it’s a little different than before.
According to two Microsoft employees speaking to Business Insider, Microsoft, which wants to work with companies that develop advertising technologies, aims to develop add-ons that make it possible to buy, sell and place advertisements in Xbox games. They also state that they are currently in the planning and research phase. For this purpose, it is aimed to add ads only to games that are free to play for now.
How will the ads be in the games?
According to Insider, Microsoft already sells certain in-game and UI ad slots on its consoles through third parties. It is expected that the new type of in-game advertisements that Microsoft plans to add will be integrated into the game world as digital billboards, not in a way that disturbs the game flow. In this way, Microsoft hopes to diversify ads and expand its customer base. In addition, unlike websites, blocking attempts in games are thought to be more difficult.
Nowadays, it has become difficult for classical television advertisements to reach the young actors who have moved away from watching television channels. Instead, the focus has been on next-generation broadcasting tools like YouTube or Netflix for ads to reach these audiences. In addition, free-to-play games with the same target audiences also create a very productive field. Microsoft, which wants to take advantage of this opportunity, is expected to attract more free games and developers to the Xbox side for this purpose.