Massive Incorporated
 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Advertising |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Mitch Davis |
| Defunct | October 2010 |
| Headquarters | New York City,New York,U.S. |
Key people | Mitch Davis (CEO) Craig Telfer (director of integration) David Sturman (2003 thru Acquisition) (CTO) Claudia Batten Client Relations,Nicholas LonganoCMO,Katherine HayesCOO |
| Products | In-game advertising |
| Parent | Microsoft(2006–2010) |
| Website | No longer exists |
Massive Incorporatedwas an Americanadvertising companythat provided software and services to dynamically host advertisements withinvideo games.Massive Incorporated was purchased byMicrosoftin May 2006 for approximately $200 million to $400 million.[1][2]
The company closed down at the end of 2010.[3]
Service[edit]
The service, collectively known asThe Massive Network,allowsgame developersto place advertisements within video games by providing asoftware development kit(SDK) andserversto host advertisements to be streamed to clients when the game is played. The streaming of advertisements allows old advertisements to be removed and more contextual ones applied in their place. Where games such asNeed For Speed: Most Wantedhad static advertisements forCingularandBurger King,[4]advertisements supplied by a streaming network allow for time-limited ads such asmovieorTV showposters. Both the publisher and Massive can then continue to make money after the game has been sold.
The software is made so as to capture the properdemographic:it would be a problem to advertise anR-ratedmovie in aG-ratedgame or to place advertisements that conflict with a game'sgenre.
First, placement and layout of the advertisements is planned by the developers with help from Massive. Advertisements can be anytexture,but to maintain realism, advertisements are generally placed on objects such asposters,billboards,storefronts, and other likely media. Massive calls this "Phase I: Design of the Inventory Elements."
Second, the SDK is integrated with the game to act as a client to Massive's ad servers. It allows the game to fetch the ad, display it on a surface, and analyze how the player acts around it. Massive refers to this as "Phase II: Integration of the Software Development Kit (SDK)."
Third is self-explanatory, "Phase III: Testing & Support."These are thesoftware testinganddeploymentsteps.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- "In-game ads go PlanetSide"by Corey Brotherson,Eurogamer.net,September 8, 2005, retrieved June 3, 2006
- ^Matt Richtel (2006-04-27)."Microsoft Is Seen Near Ad Move".The New York Times.Retrieved2007-10-11.
- ^"Breaking: Microsoft Acquires In-Game Ad Firm Massive".Gamasutra. 2006-05-04.Retrieved2007-10-11.
- ^"Microsoft Confirms In-Game Ad Company Massive to Shut Down".1UP.Archived fromthe originalon 17 October 2012.Retrieved23 October2010.
- ^Mike Musgrove (2006-03-02)."Advertisers Are Getting Into the Game".Washington Post.Retrieved2007-10-11.
External links[edit]
- Massive Incorporatedwebsite before it was closed.
- NPR broadcaston Massive Incorporated and in-game advertising in general.
- Digital In Game Advertising (DIGA) discussion forum
- http://nationalcheeseemporium.org/- Contains a detailed review of the advertising technology Massive used inSWAT 4patch 1.1.
