The in-game advertising technology startup Massive Incorporated will be acquired by an even more massive company, Microsoft.
Although Massive is privately held, sources commenting in a Wall Street Journal report believe Microsoft could shell out between $200 million and $400 million for the company.
We mentioned Massive last year and noted how the placement of in-game advertising could reach the highly-coveted young male demographic in a medium that has occupied much of their time in recent years. At the time, Nielsen Entertainment figures cited by Massive said those gamers spend 12.5 hours per week gaming and less than 10 watching TV.
Given the dynamic way Massive’s technology has been described, the purchase looks destined for Xbox Live, Microsoft’s online gaming network. Microsoft can use Massive to quickly switch ads for breaking news on the debut of a movie or release of a new CD by a band.
The deal presents a win-win scenario for game publishers. Microsoft would broker the advertising buys, and share the revenue with game designers. Those designers can facilitate the placement of ads by incorporating elements into a game where ads could be logically displayed.
That ad presentation could be extended from the purely online gaming realm to the Xbox 360 console-only titles. Since Xbox Live users connect their 360s to the Internet, Massive could deliver ads to those console titles over the broadband connection, and update those ads on the fly based on advertiser demand.
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David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
