Double Fusion Debuts Dynamic Video Game Ad Placement (Updated)

San Francisco-based in-game ad company Double Fusion debuted technology today separating ad integration from game development and allowing for dynamic ad placement. Previously, ad content could be changed with an internet connection, but developers hard-coded the in-game ad locations. The tools, called fusion.runtime, give developers the ability to create new ad placements in finished games, including back catalog titles. Paris-based Ubisoft, Seoul-headquartered NCsoft, and New York casual game publisher Oberon Media have already begun using the tools. "By offering publishers and developers two technology solutions to choose from, we're able to support a much wider range of titles and circumstances than any other company in the business," explained Double Fusion co-founder and CTO Hillel Rom. "Game makers that want deep interactivity in their ads, or want pinpoint control over system resources, will benefit from our [previous] fusion.sdk solution," he continued. "For those game makers that don't have time in their development process to incorporate an SDK, or want to add advertising to back catalog titles, or perhaps want to avoid bothering the original developer in the case of games licensed from other regions, fusion.runtime opens up the revenue possibilities by delivering great advertising experiences." "For gamers, the technology opens the door to new, free ad-supported high-quality games," noted CEO Jonathan Epstein. "For advertisers, the technology creates new types of ad possibilities across a broader selection of titles than ever before." Examples of free ad-supported games include the Ubisoft-published Far Cry, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Rayman Raving Rabbids, and Ghost Recon on PC, all of which were released for free download and play last week thanks to the integration of menu and loading screen ads. According to Parks Associates numbers cited by Reuters, in-game advertising represents a $514 million market, with in-game dynamic advertising predicted to hit $675 million by 2012 in the U.S.