GDC FOCUS ON: Game Advertising Summit to Highlight Industry Research, Perspectives From Independent In-Game Ad Service Providers, and Publisher Case StudiesDedicated In-Game Advertising Conference to Provide an Open Forum for Discussion of Market PossibilitiesPRNewswire The GDC FOCUS ON: Game Advertising Summit, has finalized its speaking schedule -- the series of talks will focus on data, independent in-game ad companies presenting capabilities and philosophies, publishers and developers discussing successes so far and market needs for the future growth of the space. The conference is presented by the CMP Game Group, host of the industry-leading Game Developers Conference (GDC), and will take place June 9, 2006 at the San Francisco Marriott. "The in-game advertising sector is rapidly growing and evolving," said Neil Kent, regional events director, CMP Technology. "In order to get a complete view of the market we felt it was important to have research frame the market data available and have independent in-game ad service providers lay out their vision." The GDC FOCUS ON: Game Advertising Summit will gather key players from the video game and advertising sectors as well as industry analysts to explore the viability of the space, projected to grow from $56 million in 2005 to as much as $1.5 billion in 2010. The summit will provide objective, real-time data and insights on the potential investment value garnered from in-game advertising campaigns. Representatives from all segments of the market who drive this new marketing medium will come together to outline the opportunities and challenges inherent to in-game advertising and investigate the best ways of executing such campaigns. "Games have become the most important new ad medium of the 21st century," said Jonathan Epstein, president and CEO of Double Fusion, "and publishers and advertisers are seeking solutions to reach the entire game-playing demographic. Double Fusion is committed to creatively utilizing the interactivity and realism inherent to the games medium, and to opening the full range of its opportunities to the marketing community, including hard core, casual or mobile titles." Chris Gilbert, president and CEO of Adscape Media, Inc., added, "Advertising in games has been a reality for years -- but the medium is evolving as advertisers seek new ways to reach out to and engage both hard core and casual gamers. Cutting-edge technology will lead the market as it matures from today's static and dynamic ads to tomorrow's highly-targeted interactive ad campaigns." Microsoft's Kevin Browne will keynote the summit and discuss his views on the future of the market in addition to the company's acquisition of Massive Incorporated. EA, Midway, Activision and THQ executives will all provide attendees with perspectives on the publisher and developer viewpoint. "IGA Worldwide's strength lies in a proven platform that is built upon an open approach dedicated to being both publisher and player friendly, while being sensitive to the interests of advertisers," said Justin Townsend, CEO of IGA Worldwide. "From our perspective, Microsoft's entrance into in-game advertising is an exciting development that clearly accelerates the ongoing concentration of the market; we anticipate that GDC will prove to be a lively forum for those attending." "As the first to launch dynamic video game advertising, we're pleased to participate in this new forum to discuss one of the most exciting new intersections of entertainment and advertising," said Mitch Davis, CEO of Massive Incorporated. "We're thrilled that so many of our publishing and advertising partners can point to best practices and work with us to bring more and more innovation to the market." The complete speaking schedule includes:
- Keynote: Scaling Up: Growing Games into the Next New Ad Medium
Kevin Browne, General Manager, Xbox New Media and Franchise Development,
Microsoft
- Analyst Session
Julie Ask, Research Director, Jupiterresearch
Michael Cai, Director, Broadband & Gaming, Parks Associates
- Reaching the 18- to 34-year old Demographic
Tim Harris, Senior Vice President, Play | a Denuo Group Company
Saneel Radia, Group Director, Play | a Denuo Group Company
- In-Game Ad Integration -- The Development Side of the Story
Kudo Tsunoda, EA Chicago GM and Executive Producer for EA SPORTS
Fight Night
- Publisher Panel
Dave Anderson, Senior Director, Business Development, Activision
Sarah McElroy, Director In-Game Ads & Promotions, Midway
Dave Miller, Director, Global Brand Management, THQ
Moderator: Simon Carless, Editorial Director, CMP Game Group
- Network Analysis Panel
Mitch Davis, CEO, Massive, Inc.
Jon Epstein, CEO, Double Fusion
Chris Gilbert, President & CEO, Ads cape Media, Inc.
Justin Townsend, CEO, IGA Worldwide
- In-Game Advertising -- the Research Perspective
Emily Della Muggier, Interactive Entertainment Vice President, Nielsen
The summit will be the first GDC FOCUS ON event and part of a series of mini conferences each dedicated to a significant sector or trend in the video game industry. Other GDC FOCUS ON events slated to take place this year include: Game Outsourcing Summit in LOS ANGELES, AUGUST 14, 2006 Game Advertising Summit in NEW YORK CITY, SEPT, 2006 Casual Games in SEATTLE, DECEMBER, 2006 For more information about the event and sponsorship opportunities, please visit http://www.gdcfocuson.com/ and http://www.gdcfocuson.com/gameadsummit. About the CMP Game Group A core provider of essential information to the professional game industry, the CMP Game Group offers market-defining content, and drives community through the Game Developers Conference, GDC Europe, GDC London, the Serious Games Summit D.C., GDC Mobile, GDC Asia, Game Developer magazine, Gamasutra.com, the Independent Games Festival, the Game Developers Choice Awards, GDCRadio, and GDCTV. For more information, please visit www.cmpgame.com. About CMP Technology (www.cmp.com) CMP Technology is a marketing solutions company serving the technology industry. Through its market-leading portfolio of trusted information brands, CMP has earned the confidence of more technology professionals than any other media company. As a result, CMP is the premier provider of access, insight and actionable programs designed to connect sellers and buyers in ways that yield superior return on investment. CMP Technology is a subsidiary of United Business Media (http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/), a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $3 billion. SOURCE: CMP Game Group CONTACT: Sibel Sunar, ext. 271, sibel@bohle.com, or Brian Rubin, Web site: http://www.gdcfocuson.com/ |