The launch of Bidstack Sports last month was another major step in the adoption of intrinsic advertising for the industry, and today we got to put our questions to SVP and head of Bidstack Sports, Alex Nunez.
Intrinsic advertising - the use of in-game adverts within the game world - has slowly but surely become a popular innovation within the game industry. For companies that grapple with getting eyeballs on adverts and ensuring players are in a positive mindset when engaging with their products, intrinsic marketing represents a unique and practical solution.
One great example people use to illustrate intrinsic ads in the real world are billboards within a stadium, ideally occupied by major brands with thousands if not millions of viewers seeing them. It was only a matter of time before a company chose to take the next practical step and do the same in the space of virtual sports.
With the launch of a dedicated sports division and partnership with virtual sporting company Simwin, in-game advertising specialists Bidstack are looking to do just that. We got the chance to put some of our questions to their SVP and head, Alex Nunez, about just what’s in store for Bidstack.
PocketGamer.biz: What do you think the benefit is to players and advertisers with the use of in-game advertising?
Alex Nunez: “Native advertising within sports sim environments powered by Bidstack tech presents largely untapped, high-value and scalable opportunities for sponsors to communicate with fans. By delivering relevant content seamlessly into virtual environments, communication can be even more impactful than the real-world equivalents where brands are often forced to direct their messaging to a fraction of the global fanbases tuning in.”
Tell us about how Bidstack works on mobile, specifically?
“Bidstack maintains an extensive and continuously evolving portfolio of premium mobile games. We plan to utilise these existing relationships to accelerate new commercial opportunities and further bridge the authenticity gap between real-world and virtual sports experiences. With extensive audience scale, our mobile partnerships will enable publishers to monetise otherwise vacant virtual spaces, delivering significant levels of exposure and awareness for innovative brands. With this said, Bidstack Sports remains platform agnostic by design, with our focus on reaching audiences where they personally choose to play. We believe that high-fidelity simulation environments, be it on mobile, console, PC of VR, will continue to lead the way in delivering our vision of providing captivating experiences that mirror the emotions and value of traditional sports.”
How do you feel Bidstack Sports will compare and compete with similar enterprises?
“We continue to emphasise our intent not to compete with or disrupt traditional sponsorship placements, but instead, complement existing models which have enabled sports to thrive as a core pillar of global entertainment and culture. We believe that through delivering technology that empowers unique experiences for audiences, we can power the next wave of sports industry growth and innovation.”
Do you see adoption becoming widespread in the short or long term?
“Our investment in Bidstack Sports as a dedicated unit signifies our commitment to generating innovative revenue models that sustain the long-term growth of the sports industry. As we extend our network of partnerships, we anticipate the technology will continue to demonstrate further opportunities to enhance industry relationships and deliver continued value.”
What are the biggest challenges and opportunities in the in-game advertising space currently?
“From a publisher perspective, we look forward to extending our relationships by offering unique and historically untapped monetisation opportunities while maintaining deep consideration for user experience and protecting the core gameplay. We believe that developers who work on sports simulation titles are among the most passionate sports fans in the world and we’re excited to see how our tools will further empower them to further blend the experience between their art form and the traditional matchday.
Much like the evolution of any industry, we anticipate that the initial adoption of the technology will accelerate as education and awareness around the demonstrated use cases broaden.”
Where do you think Bidstack Sports will be headed next?
“Bidstack Sports will continue to shape its future around the experience, knowledge and success of traditional sports practices, empowering video game publishers and rights-holder partners to expand their commercial and fan engagement footprints into previously unexplored sports simulation environments.
Bidstack tech activates virtual stadiums with dynamic content and messaging control, establishing new, complementary revenue models for the sports industry whilst amplifying the realism of sacred destinations for fan engagement.”
