Player X and Amobee team up on ad-funded games
LONDON/SAN FRANCISCO - 1 October 2007 - Mobile Media Company Player X is working in partnership with Amobee Media Systems to launch in-game advertising for its portfolio of award-winning mobile games.
The first titles to launch under the ad-funded model include FremantleMedia's Sale of the Century, Strike it Lucky, Sensible Soccer Skillz, Space Invaders, Family Fortunes® and ToCA Race Driver3.
Under the partnership, Player X has integrated Amobee's Handset Application Programming Interface (HAPI) into its games. The HAPI is a small SDK that can be integrated to make the games 'Amobee-ready' and conditioned to take ads.
Consumers will be offered the chance to opt into the ad-funded games, receiving a discount on the purchase price in return for being served ad impressions at the game launch, exit, and during the idle time between game levels.
Subscribers have the option of engaging with the advertising brand for additional information by clicking to call, browse or send an SMS. Users are in full control and can opt not to view the ads and continue playing the game.
"Ad-funded content models have the potential to transform the mobile content business, giving the end user more for less while generating an additional revenue stream. We see this model and our partnership with Amobee as a crucial step toward building the development expertise and look forward to working with them," said Tony Pearce, Player X CEO.
The use of advertising to fund mobile services will significantly increase the consumption of mobile content and generate a new revenue stream for operators, according to live trial results released by Amobee Media Systems.
Aggregated data from multiple trials with tier one operators, shows that for every person that paid to download a mobile game, between five and 10 times more took the 'ad-subsidized' version in return for accepting advertising. The ad-funded game value can be worth as much as four times the equivalent download value.
"Player X is taking the lead in innovating new models for mobile media. Operators can now launch ad-funded games with very little effort and generate ad revenues while increasing the overall penetration of mobile games," said Patrick Parodi, Chief Marketing Officer and General Manager EMEA at Amobee.
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Media Contacts:
For more information on Player X, please contact monty.munford@playerx.com or +44 (0) 7970 673695.
For more information on Amobee, please contact richard.george@nelsonbostock.com or cristina.whittington@nelsonbostock.com or +44 (0)20 7229 4400
About Player X
Player X is a mobile media company that specialises in games, video and TV. It develops, publishes and distributes mobile entertainment content through global operators, portals and handset manufacturers. Player X has deals with more than 140 global operators and a potential audience of more than 2.5 billion people. The company operates in all five continents across the world and has offices in all the key territories in Europe, Asia and the Americas.
About Amobee Media Systems:
Amobee Media Systems has built and designed the first and only telco-grade ad-serving solution 100% dedicated to mobile operators, allowing them to dynamically insert advertising impressions in all forms of mobile communication and content: WAP Browsing, Video & Music, SMS, MMS, and Games etc... Amobee's complete ad serving solution is designed to facilitate the launch of advertising campaigns for brand building, direct response and lead generation campaigns helping mobile operators and their subscribers to "get more for less". The company has also engaged advertisers and media buying agencies to directly purchase ad inventory as part of Amobee's growing advertising network.
Amobee's media system is capable of supporting everything from in-game and in-video to in-wap and in-message mobile impression insertions. The insertions occur with full user consent and are made in a relevant, contextual and non-intrusive manner thus increasing the media value while giving users control over the engagement.
Headquartered in the San Francisco, the company enjoys financial backing from some of the biggest names in venture capital: Accel Partners ( www.accel.com), Sequoia Capital ( www.sequoiacap.com), and Globespan ( www.globespancapital.com). Amobee has commercial offices in London and San Francisco, with R&D in Herzliya, Israel.