In-Game Advertising Market Size, Share, Opportunities, COVID-19 Impact, And Trends By Ad Type (Static Ads, Dynamic Ads, Advergaming), By Game Type (PC/Laptop Games, Console Games, Smartphone/ Tablet Games), And By Geography - Forecasts From 2022 To 2027

The in-game advertising market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.08% during the forecast period to reach US$221.511 billion by 2027, from US$137.266 billion in 2020.

Introduction

In-Game Advertising (IGA) is the adoption of advertisements in the gaming industry to help companies market their products and services. With the increasing number of gamers among the audiences, the gaming industry provides a ready market for advertising agencies. Moreover, with the introduction and development of contextualized in-game ads, gamers can experience advertisements without the worry of interruptions in the gameplay.

Market Trend:

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the advertising market saw massive potential in the gaming industry. Due to the government-imposed lockdowns and remote-work norms, the gaming industry saw an inflow of consumers. The mobile gaming industry reported a significant increase in users due to its accessibility and economic factors. This allowed the in-game industry to increase in size and demand as companies started to flood in for the industry.

The in-game advertising industry is also expected to experience better technology as companies develop better advertisement technology to improve the advertising consumption experience without interrupting the gameplay. Also, with the advancement in the virtual gaming industry and the metaverse, the in-game ad experience is expected to improve significantly.

Growth Factors

• Prevalence of mobile games

With the growing adoption of smartphones and handheld devices, the mobile gaming sector has become a huge market in recent times. Mobile gaming provides its users with the ability to play games at any moment without the use of any other equipment. Following the COVID-19 outbreak, the in-game advertisement industry saw tremendous market opportunities in the mobile gaming sector, resulting in a rapid increase in market value.

According to Hubspot, there are 3.24 billion mobile gamers globally, which is expected to increase by another million users by the end of 2023. The US accounts for about 203 million of these mobile gamers, and about 56% of them play more than ten times a week. With this rapid adoption of mobile gaming among people, the in-game advertising market is expected to rise.

• Investments in the sector

Evaluating the immense scope of the in-game advertisement sector, companies have started to pool their investments for the market. Investments in the sector would help develop a better and more interactive advertising experience for the gaming industry.

• In October 2021, Admix secured US$25 million to develop its in-game advertising platform. Since businesses continue to target wealthy people who are increasingly playing games, time is ideal. The current round of investment takes Admix's total funding to US$37 million, making it the most by any "non-intrusive games monetization firm." Elefund, Force Over Mass, DIP Capital, Notion Capital, Speedinvest, Rocket Capital, Colopl Next, Sure Valley Ventures, Kuvi Capital, and Sidedoor Ventures are among the investors. This funding would help in developing many opportunities for the advertising company.
• Entravision, major worldwide advertising solutions, media, and technology firm, announced in April 2022, that it has chosen Anzu.io, one of the world's most advanced in-game advertising platforms, as its exclusive Latin American partner. Entravision will exclusively represent Anzu in 18 Latin American regions through its business unit Entravision-Cisneros Interactive, educating advertisers on the benefits of in-game advertising and allowing firms to use Anzu's award-winning solution for marketers, developers, and players.
• In April 2022, Gadsme, a French IT startup that bills itself as the first in-game adtech platform to enable "immersive brand experiences" through in-game advertising, announced that it had received US$8 million in funding just 11 months after launching. As an outcome, it has received funding and direct creative collaboration from some of the greatest market players in gaming. Firms, including Ubisoft, were involved in the venture, which was led by interactive digital investment company Galaxy Interactive. Gadsme provides non-intrusive ad formats that are "blended, immersed, and organic to the gameplay," as well as being easy to configure and privacy compliant, allowing for appropriate advertisements to be presented to players across all devices, locations, and demographics. Due to the immense investment and developments in the sector, the in-game advertising market is expected to rise further.
• In April 2021, InMobi, a top independent marketing company, announced the debut of in-game advertising, which businesses can now access programmatically on the InMobi Exchange. With the introduction of distinctive in-game inventory on the InMobi Exchange, brands will be able to target premium mobile users with advertisements that seamlessly integrate into the game world, such as electronic advertising boards in an in-game sports stadium, an esports arena, or the hugely popular casual and hypercasual gaming spaces.

Restraint

• Measuring viewability

Despite its enormous potential, in-game advertising has been virtually unexplored thus far. Advertisers have to come up with a new technique to present video game commercials. The mid-game or mid-video format of YouTube advertising was originally explored in mobile games. Nevertheless, video ads in between games interrupt the overall gaming experience.

The development of contextualized in-game ads is a better alternative to traditional video ads. Companies like Adverty and Bidstack have created real-world ads for games embedded into the gameplay and hence provide a better ad experience.

However, there are still issues with in-game advertising. The criterion for determining viewability is still unsure. Advertisers sell ad space partly by guaranteeing viewability, which is why ads on television and the super bowl in the United States sell for millions of dollars. However, contextualized in-game ads cannot be measured based on viewability directly. A user might miss it subconsciously if they are not paying attention to the peripheral gameplay environment.

Hence, companies cannot be sure about the reach of their in-game advertisements, which is why some companies are reluctant to invest in contextualized game ads. 

In-Game Advertising Market Scope:

 

Report Metric	Details
Market Size Value in 2020	US$137.266 billion
Market Size Value in 2027	US$221.511 billion
Growth Rate	CAGR of 7.08% from 2020 to 2027
Base Year	2020
Forecast Period	2022–2027
Forecast Unit (Value)	USD Billion
Segments Covered	Ad Type, Game Type, And Geography
Regions Covered	North America, South America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific
Companies Covered	Admix, Bidstack Limited, Adverty AB, Rapidfire, Inc., Playwire, Gamelin, Engage, Ironsource
Customization Scope	Free report customization with purchase

 

Market Segments

• By Ad Type
  • Static Ads
  • Dynamic Ads
  • Advergaming
• By Game Type
  • PC/Laptop Games
  • Console Games
  • Smartphone/ Tablet Games
• By Geography
  • North America
    • USA
    • Canada
    • Mexico
  • South America
    • Brazil
    • Argentina
    • Others
  • Europe
    • Germany
    • France
    • United Kingdom
    • Italy
    • Others
  • Middle East and Africa
    • Saudi Arabia
    • UAE
    • Israel
    • South Africa
    • Others
  • Asia Pacific
    • China
    • Japan
    • India
    • South Korea
    • Taiwan
    • Thailand
    • Indonesia
    • Others

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Admix

Bidstack Limited

Adverty AB

Rapidfire, Inc.

Playwire

Gamelin

Engage

Ironsource