Video Game Ads Contribute To 'Slow Death' Of :30

Aside from adding another pre-eulogy to the impending death of the 30-second commercial, a study by the Reed Elsevier research firm In-Stat/MDR says that the growing attraction of video games as ad vehicles is likely to grow more than most expect.

The report, "Television Advertising 2004-2009: The Slow Death of the 30-Second Commercial," looks at how TV advertising is changing in the face of increased competition from the Internet, video games, and prepackaged content, as well as new technologies such as personal video recorders. The report includes forecasts of new advertising methods such as video game advertising and product placement, as well as TV, cable, Internet, and radio advertising.

Among the report's findings is that the total U.S. electronic advertising market will see an average growth rate of 2.8 percent from 2005 through 2009 in the face of the reduced potency of broadcast advertising. The growth will largely be driven by Internet advertising, and to a lesser extent, cable TV and video game advertising.

The diminishing effectiveness of broadcast advertising can be attributed to two major irreversible trends, said Mike Wolf, principal analyst of In-Stat/MDR. The first is the continued fading away of the broadcast TV audience to other media, like cable television, DVDs, the Internet, and electronic gaming.

The second is an increasingly empowered consumer through new technologies like the personal video recorder (PVR) that allows users to skip ads. In addition, the consumer will continue to be empowered through new distribution channels for content, such as DVD by mail and downloadable premium content through services such as CinemaNow and MovieLink.

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