| The
Top 10 Things to Know in 2005 in Interactive Advertising
Overview
A guy over at Fairchild Semiconductor named Gordon Moore
made a statement back in 1965 that computer processors
would basically double in power every couple of years.
Today, we call his observation “Moore’s
Law.”
Interactive advertising is also growing at a lightning-fast
rate, and with it, an ever-expanding list of terms that
anybody in the industry needs to know. Whether it’s
one of your clients asking a question, or some technogeek
spouting off a theoretical possibility, these are going
to be terms that you will hear.
So, without further ado, the top 10 things you’ll
need to know in 2005:
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| Who would
have ever thought of this wall-destroying icon
as a video game hero? |
10. Advergaming
No, this doesn’t mean putting advertisements into
video games (that’s #6 on this
list). Advergaming is when you make a game for the
brand. This is nothing new. Mattel released “Kool
Aid Man” in 1983, and even that wasn’t close
to the first advergame. These days, however, advergaming
generally refers to online and/or video games.
9. Satellite Radio
Yes, it really is radio, only it’s broadcast on
a real high frequency from satellites tens of thousands
of miles away. The big US companies (XM and Sirius)
have about 120 channels (radio stations) each on this
subscription-based service. They offer few (or no) commercials
per channel, but do require that you additionally purchase
some hardware to install on your car dashboard (or your
office desk).
8. Bluetooth
Very simply, Bluetooth is a type of wireless radio that
allows devices near each other to share information.
So, your cell phone can use Bluetooth to update the
calendar on your PC, or perhaps you could simply beam
contact information to another cell phone. Although
some Bluetooth connections could go as far as 100 yards
or so, think of Bluetooth as only something to use within
30 feet or so. What makes it really useful is the number
of devices that could theoretically connect with each
other using Bluetooth – you could connect cell
phones with PDA’s, laptops, desktops, car stereo
systems, iPods/mp3 players, and more. If something’s
got Bluetooth, it can talk to other Bluetooth-enabled
devices.
7. DVR (Digital Video Recorder)
Think VCR, only with a hard drive. This device sits
in your entertainment center and records television
stations. Many DVR’s (like TiVo, for example)
allow you to skip over commercials, and include the
ability to pause or rewind “live” television.
In addition, DVR service providers (like TiVo) allow
you to download (for a subscription fee) television
programming information so that you can program your
DVR ahead of time, or even set up rules, such as “Record
every episode of the West Wing.”
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| It's hard
to read in this little graphic, but it says, "Hire
Kevin Glennon To Get Rich!" |
6. In-Game Advertising
This is going to be a fun one in 2005! How to place
advertisements within video games? Do we put billboards
in fantasy space? Do our characters wear Nike sportswear
and use Motorola cell phones? The big debates in 2005
on in-game advertising will include how to measure the
effectiveness of a campaign (how to you measure impressions
for off-line gaming?). This topic was also the subject
of the wonderful KG.com paper, "Digital
Diapers."
5. Mobisodes
Cell phones and other mobile devices will soon be able
to show (and stream) video. Mobisodes are short broadcast
programs designed to be played on these devices. Think
of them as 2-5 minute television episodes (or shorter).
As these become more prevalent, you’re going to
hear people talking once again about those BMW films
from a couple of years ago.
4. Podcasting
Podcasting is when people listen to pre-recorded radio
shows over their mobile music devices (such as the Apple
iPod). Basically, they plug their devices into the home
machine, search through a list of Podcasts looking for
keywords of interest to them (sports, underground punk,
cooking, etc.), and download what they feel are interesting
“shows.” They can then unplug and listen
to the Podcast on the way to work.
3. RSS
Well, people disagree about what it stands for, but
I’m going to say “Really Simple Syndication.”
RSS, in a nutshell, is a list of things that explain
the details of something you’re trying to share.
So, for example, if you recorded a Podcast and wanted
people to be able to find it in their online searches,
you’d write an RSS file that contained the date
of the recording, the author, the topics discussed,
the length of the show, etc. (all this stuff is sometimes
called “metadata”). People then use programs
called “aggregators” which search the web
for RSS files for certain keywords and parameters. If
your RSS file meets their search, they find your web
site, Podcast, blog, whatever, and you’re in like
Flynn.
2. Peer To Peer
This refers to the sharing of files directly between
two computers. Companies/programs like Napster and BitTorrent
use peer to peer communication as a way of swapping
files. This replaces the traditional client-host concept,
and improves on it in that people can download different
pieces of the same file from different computers at
the same time. It speeds the process up, though it does
make it rather difficult to track what people are sharing.
1. Blogging
Ironically, the growing trend in “blogging”
is to set up bulletin board-type web sites and call
them “Blogs.” The term, however, originates
from the use of Web Logs, or online personal journals.
A modern blog is set up like a traditional bulletin
board system, with users able to start topics (or “threads”),
and other users able to respond (or “comment”)
on them. Both fierce debates and very informative exchanges
of ideas can coexist on these sites. Many blogs make
use of RSS to allow users to search multiple blogs for
updates, without having to individually visit each site
in sequence.
In Conclusion
Now, those ten items aren’t the only things you’re
going to need to know this year, but you can rest assured
you’re going to hear about them. Somebody's going
to try to sell you an idea, and now you're going to
be prepared when they start throwing these terms around.
More information can be found on these using the links
below.
Links For Additional Reading
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