Turner, Part of Warner Media Group, Will Lead the Beta-Testing of the New Services, Providing 3D Viewability Measurement, Ad-Fraud Prevention, and Brand-Safety for In-Game Advertising for Playstation, Xbox and PC

Blended in-game advertising platform Anzu and military-grade cybersecurity company CHEQ announced a partnership to deliver the first-ever ad-verification solution for console gaming.

The move enables, for the first time, the dynamic serving of programmatic ads integrated directly into game play, within a viewable, brand-safe and fraud-free environment. This provides brands access to premium games that have never displayed ads before.

The pilot is launched in conjunction with Turner, part of AT&T’s Warner Media Group, among the first tranche of advertisers piloting the serving of in-game ads to produce engaging brand experiences and product placements for gamers.  Turner is part of the media and advertising group that includes HBO and Warner Bros, encompassing brands including CNN, and hits such as Game of Thrones. The entity also owns ad platform AppNexus and ELEAGUE, its premium e-sports content and live tournament brand.

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CHEQ will provide end-to-end ad verification within Anzu’s blended in-game advertising platform, involving a full suite of 3D viewability measurement, ad-fraud prevention, and brand safety. The technology provides real-time verifiable tracking and measurement of ad performance within 3D video game environments, including PlayStation, Xbox, and PC. This will enable targeting of campaigns to key audiences, while providing 3D ad tracker technology to ensure in-game ads served by Anzu are viewable.

The new ad-verification service is uniquely designed to reach the $148 billion global gaming market. The worldwide gaming audience today includes 2.4 billion people, who spend more than 50 million hours a day playing video games, making it a natural target for big brand advertisers looking to connect with broader audiences.

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Pete Scott, VP of Emerging Media, Turner Sports New Media, said: “CHEQ, Anzu, and Turner first met via The Bridge tech commercialization initiative.  It’s our platform for partnering with the most innovative companies that help us stay relevant in the ever-changing media landscape. We are delighted about this disruptive collaboration, providing advertisers with a new way to present and track ads inside video games. This will be a big opportunity as we continue to compete for impressions across all media channels.”

“This is a milestone for the gaming industry,” said Anzu’s CEO Itamar Benedy. “e-Sports is overtaking traditional sports, and gaming is becoming the most engaging medium for Gen Z. Big advertisers realize that it’s time to switch to gaming, otherwise there is a big chance to lose out on an entire generation of consumers. By launching the first verified native advertising service in the space, we aim at creating long-term security and trust for in-game advertising.”

Guy Tytunovich, CHEQ Founder and CEO, added: “Our goal at CHEQ is to push the boundaries of ad-verification and that’s exactly what we’re doing by introducing the first verification solution for PlayStation and Xbox environments. Up until now, there has been resistance to programmatic ads served in-game to players, due to previous lack of control, viewability and measurement. We’re delighted to be launching this service with leading brands and look forward to the wave of advertisers to start experiencing fully verified, seamless, in-game native advertising.”

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