Stringer, Kotick question potential of in-game ads

Sony’s Howard Stringer and Activision’s Bobby Kotick have both said they are unsure whether video games can be fully sustained by in-game advertising.

The news comes after EA announced it was to make its new Battlefield game available for free on the internet – and was financially supporting it through in-game ads and item sales.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Sony CEO Stringer said:

"The [supposed] solution to everything at the moment in the digital space is ad-supported. While advertisers are happy to talk that up, there is a limit to the amount of money available."

He added that young people don’t like advertising very much", but admitted business models were changing fast.

Activision Blizzard CEO Kotick was similarly sceptical. He said:

"It’s early days. I wouldn’t go in that direction myself."