EA in Hot Water Again as Reports of the Company’s Deal With Simulmedia Come Forward

Ads in video games have been a topic of great controversy since devs first started to incorporate them into their games. The practice is expected to continue into the future. And recently, one huge company, namely EA, has had to defend itself against allegations of planning to add in-game advertisements. It’s hard to tell whether EA is lying or telling the truth since an official report says that EA did indeed strike a deal with a company known for bringing ads to console and PC games.

EA has maintained that the reports are incorrect and that their primary focus is still on giving players the best experience. And they also claimed that they’re not currently looking to introduce in-game ads to consoles. This is good news for gamers but there’s still a lot to unravel here.

What is PlayerWON?

PlayerWON is platform/system that companies can use to put ads in their video games. Players will be rewarded with items or in-game currency should they decide to watch the ad. The concept isn’t entirely new as a lot of the games played on mobile phones already have these ads. But these ads haven’t presented themselves on consoles and the PC, and that’s what PlayerWON might soon change. The platform is owned by Simulmedia. And Simulmedia has already been making progress when it comes to doing business.

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Despite EA’s deal with the company being up for interpretation (even though evidence suggests otherwise), there is complete certainty when it comes to Tecent’s Hi-Rez. Yes, Simulmedia has indeed struck a deal with Hi-Rez Studios, which is quite an accomplishment from a business perspective.

How can EA benefit from PlayerWON?

Evidence amassed over the years suggests that not always do conventional methods of reaching out to consumers work. This is more true for young people, who’re exposed to advertisements less, compared to older people. And this is why reward-based ads have seen decent success when it comes to getting young people to buy stuff. EA, much like any other company, does have a lot to benefit here. This is mainly because developers don’t automatically make money from free-to-play games. Players need to engage in transactions for the company to make money. And if these developers included in-game ads, they would make money courtesy of the ads.

These in-game ads haven’t arrived on consoles or the PC yet. But one day they will, and how much the gaming experience will change remains to be seen.

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