In-game advertising (IGA) integrates advertisements directly into video games, a practice distinct from advergames created solely for promotion. This industry has experienced explosive growth, escalating from $34 million in 2004 to an estimated $7.2 billion by 2016 according to Forbes, with its earliest known instance being the 1978 game Adventureland using self-promotion.
IGA can be integrated in various ways: from subtle background displays like billboards or load-screen commercials, to deep immersion where advertised products are crucial for gameplay or appear in cutscenes. There are two primary types: static ads are programmed into the game and cannot change (similar to product placement, sometimes allowing player interaction as seen with Sony Ericsson phones in Splinter Cell), while dynamic ads leverage internet connectivity to deliver real-time, updatable, and targetable content.
A major advantage of IGA is that players are less prone to multitasking compared to traditional media. Dynamic advertising allows for real-time tracking of engagement data and participation in time-sensitive campaigns, notably exemplified by Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign which placed billboard ads in Xbox games across key swing states.