MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has referred three unnamed online games to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The CMA says that it is concerned that these games may breach the Advertising Codes and consumer law by directly encouraging children to buy, or ask their parents to buy, extra game …
Read More »VIDEO: Hearthstone ad to air during NBA and NHL finals
Blizzard will give its free-to-play card battler Hearthstone a big push with a TV ad that will air during the NBA and NHL finals in the US. The 30-second short takes a light-hearted approach to the title, showing off little in the way of gameplay and instead showing a fictional …
Read More »ASA warns Sony and GAME over 20th Anniversary PS4 competition
The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a complaint against Sony and GAME over how last year’s 20th Anniversary PS4 competition was conducted. The ASA says that six complainants alleged that the competition’s rules had been breached, and were further aggrieved that the names of the winners had not allegedly been …
Read More »Ad-free, subscription-based YouTube service incoming
A leaked letter sent to content creators has confirmed YouTube’s long-suspected plan to launch an ad-free subscription service for viewers. Your fans want choices,” the letter, obtained by Bloomberg, stated. We’re… taking another big step in favour of choice: offering fans an ad-free version of YouTube for a monthly fee. …
Read More »Eligible members of PS Vita class action settlement can now collect
PlayStation Vita owners eligible in the class action lawsuit brought against Sony for deceptive advertising of its handheld have received instructions on how to collect cash, PlayStation Store credit, or free games. Polygon reports anyone that purchased a PS Vita in the US prior to June 2012 qualifies for a …
Read More »Mobile company TV ad spend outpacing console games
Four of the biggest video game TV ad spenders in the US in Q1 were mobile game companies. VentureBeat reports that iSpot data shows that the four companies in question – King (Candy Crush Saga), Machine Zone (Game of War), Supercell (Clash of Clans) and uCool (Heroes Charge) – spent …
Read More »Ebuyer signs with Dave for first TV sponsorship deal
Online retailer Ebuyer.com has announced its first TV sponsorship campaign with UK TV channel Dave. The deal – worth 2.8 million – is set to run from January 2015 for a year, with Ebuyer.com sponsoring the ‘Weekends on Dave’ slot. The campaign has been named ‘Big on Tech’ and features …
Read More »No sex please, we’re Facebook
Why are so many consumers reacting badly to video game Facebook advertising? The social network’s global director of gaming sales, Rick Kelley, tells MCV why publishers ought to cover up their salacious stars… At London Games Conference, you described Facebook as being a personal newspaper. What did you mean? Your …
Read More »Google introduces a subscription service to rid the internet of advertising
So web ads annoy you? Do they annoy you enough to make you cough up a subscription to use the internet? Google has unveiled a new service called ‘Contributor by Google’. There’s little in the way of actual information, although the service’s website asks: Today’s Internet is mostly funded by …
Read More »King tops in TV ads over Sony, Microsoft – report
Candy Crush Saga creator King runs more television advertisements than any other video game company out there, according to advertising metrics company iSpot.tv. Games Beat reports on the ad firm’s findings, which state King commercials have aired on US national television more than 34,000 times this year. Microsoft ran just …
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