Interview

Tap Me CEO Hernandez on how iAd will impact its iComplishments in-game ad network

Competition of sorts

Tap Me CEO Hernandez on how iAd will impact its iComplishments in-game ad network
One company with a particular interest in the iPhone 4.0 OS is US startup Tap Me.

Not only is it a game developer, it's currently building out its own in-game advertising network and social marketing platform called iComplishments.

You can read our GDC 2010 interview with CEO Joshua Hernandez, explaining how it works, here.

Potentially then, the announcement of Apple's own advertising network, iAD, plus its social platform Game Center could be seen as fierce competition.

Foundational

Not so says Hernandez.

"Apple did us a favour by introducing Game Center. From what we can tell from the beta SDK, we can integrate our ad platform with it and have every intention of doing so," he says.

"This negates the need for us to compete with the social networks for iPhone developers and we can focus on the benefits of our in-game advertising platform."

Perpendicular

As for iAd, he argues that as iComplishments is a fully in-game advertising mechanism, which is linked to gameplay achievements, the two are unlikely to compete directly.

"Firstly, iComplishments is integrated and draws its effectiveness from the users interaction with both the game and the brand meta-game we introduce with our product," he explains.

"Secondly, developers and advertisers are already aware of the futility of the game-breaking experience flow, which is why the pre-roll and post-roll ad has become popular in online games.

"By presenting an advertisement unit with the depth and complexity of iAd, Apple will allow advertisers the possibility of multi-tiered experiences that will require longer engagement times. This is a problem for games as it will break the users flow even if it happens between levels or during a transition."

Head-to-head

Hernandez admits there will be some level of competition however, if only in terms of mindshare.

"We're well aware of the power of the iAd brand. It will put the usage of the platform at developers' fingertips, increasing our need to educate developers about our vision."

"Competing with Apple will be a lot harder than competing with Greystripe or AdMob but our message is clear. If advertising is going to become a revenue source for games, it needs to be a game itself and not impose on the delicate balance of a games design."

To find out more about iComplishments, check out its website.

Contributing Editor

A Pocket Gamer co-founder, Jon is Contributing Editor at PG.biz which means he acts like a slightly confused uncle who's forgotten where he's left his glasses. As well as letters and cameras, he likes imaginary numbers and legumes.