In the last decades, advertising through television and other traditional media has been the most effective way of reaching the 18-34 demographic. But when television advertising began to clutter and the number of people who read started to go down, marketers were faced with the challenge of searching for a new advertising medium where ads would be delivered more effectively. Movie placements have made their mark in the industry, and so has Internet advertising, but a far better option is available, namely that of in-game advertising.

Everyone will agree that the gaming industry has experienced tremendous growth over the last ten years. Subsequently, it's understandable why advertisers see in-game advertising as a highly effective platform for ad placement.

In-game advertising has been gaining significant ground only over the past couple years. As with new advertising medium, this new media channel was also subjected to a series of debates that included its feasibility and its effectiveness. Some marketers believed that the reach of on in-game advertising in the 18-34 demographic was very limited and in no way it would match the reach of television or print in this demographic.

The two types of in game advertising available are static and dynamic. Static in-game advertising provides a superior advertising platform with more meaningful ad integrations. Dynamic in-game advertising provides more flexibility and allows the ads to be updated after the game is published, but provides a limited set of options for ad integrations. Furthermore, static in-game advertising is considerably more relevant to the game storyline, which makes them more meaningful.

Although many people consider in-game advertising to be in its infancy, the projected growth for this industry is very promising. In-game advertising works well with all videogame platforms including: consoles, portable games, online game and massive multi-player games. In general, if done correctly, in-game advertising can even improve gameplay add realism to the videogame.