American game publishing giant Electronic Arts (hereinafter referred to as EA) announced the launch of a new "EA Advertising" in-game advertising platform, open to cooperation with brands that want to connect with players through games. With the help of this platform, brands can integrate their products into EA's many popular works in real time through dynamic implantation, including "EA Sports FC", "Madden NFL", "NHL", "Skate" and "The Sims".
EA says its EA Sports business engages "hundreds of millions" of players each year across consoles, PC and mobile. The official also emphasized that sports games have extremely high user stickiness. For example, the cumulative daily game time of "Madden NFL" can be equivalent to 23,000 NFL seasons, while "EA Sports FC" has more than 1 billion games played every day.
Players come to EA's games and online experiences every day to "play, watch, create and connect," EA Chief Experience Officer David Tinson said in a statement, providing brands with the opportunity to "be present in the moments that matter." He emphasized that through EA Advertising, brands can participate in a form that respects the player experience and fits the game's worldview without destroying the immersion of the game, so as to complete the display in a scenario that is "meaningful to the players."
According to EA, brands participating in the EA Advertising program can use real-time dynamic delivery technology to integrate advertising content into games in various forms. Specific methods include virtual billboard advertisements in stadiums, targeted advertising spots for different audiences, and in-game interactive content customized around the brand. These contents are officially described as being designed to "enhance, not interrupt" the player experience.
EA further said that in highly interactive gaming environments, brands will "become part of the game itself," more closely matching the way players encounter ads in the real world. Brands can flexibly carry out activities in the real-time environment of the game, adjust placement according to different marketing goals, and continuously optimize and update advertising activities based on aggregated interaction data.
Currently, EA has collaborated with a number of real-world brands on multiple titles. Existing placement cases include: partnering with Visa in "EA Sports FC" and college football-related works, introducing the Lowe's brand in "EA Sports FC", "Madden NFL" and college football games, and linking up with Red Bull, Xfinity and Peacock in "EA Sports FC" and adding Mountain Dew-related content in college football games.
By officially launching the EA Advertising platform, EA is trying to consolidate these fragmented brand collaborations into a standardized platform to attract more advertisers and further expand its business ecosystem built around sports and lifestyle games.