At the same time, the strategies of video game companies like EA increasingly include marketing tie-ins like Ikea's presence in "The Sims." Such deals help game publishers recoup the increasing costs of developing games, which can rival some Hollywood film budgets.įor marketers, the huge fan bases for some video games - more than six million copies of "Grand Theft Auto: 4," the latest installment of another popular series, were sold in the first week - are a rich target audience for ads and other promotional activity.Įd Bartlett, co-founder of IGA Worldwide, which places advertising into video games, said total marketing activity in video games would rise to about $1 billion by the end of the decade, from about $350 million a year now.īartlett said the biggest potential for growth was in so-called dynamic advertising, which involves inserting television- or billboard-style ads into video games, often as part of the backdrop. "Because we have such a direct relationship with our players, the players help shape the product strategy," Smith said. The decision to sell virtual Ikea chairs, bookshelves, mirrors, lamps and dozens of other items followed requests from players for more modern, realistic furnishings in "Sims" sets, said Nancy Smith, president of the "Sims" label at EA. The partnership shows how, in the digital media, the traditional lines between paid-for content and marketing material increasingly are being blurred.
For around $20, players will be able to buy a "stuff pack" that will let them fill out their Sims abodes with Ikea designs. Last week, Electronic Arts, the video game publisher, announced an agreement with Ikea in which its furniture would be featured in "The Sims," a series of games that allows players to simulate the actions of a fictional family. But like other brands seeking a marketing edge, Ikea is moving into virtual realms.
PARIS - PARIS: With their square, Scandinavian lines and consonant-rich names, Ikea home furnishings - the Leksvik coffee table or the Ektorp sofa, for instance - might seem solidly rooted in the real world.
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