UK Spy Agency Uses In-Game Ads for Recruitment

GCHQ, which stands for Government Communications Headquarters, said it was looking to reach “an Internet-savvy generation of graduate groups.”

It’s great to see in-game ads go beyond the typical ad for cars, movies and entertainment and start looking at other possible products or services you can use the services to market. I sent this around the office today and people thought it was a good idea and something we coud use.

“The world of online gaming offers GCHQ a further route to target a captive audience,” she said.

The monthlong ad campaign, which starts at the end of October, is being run by GCHQ, the recruitment firm TMP Worldwide and Microsoft-owned in-game ad agency Massive Inc.

Ads headed “Careers in British Intelligence” will appear as billboards in scenes in “Splinter Cell” and other games including “Need for Speed Carbon” and “Enemy Territory: Quake Wars” when they are played on computers and Microsoft Xbox consoles in Britain.

You’ve a very captive audience there, myself included, and you can’t alway just advertise the same products or we are going to get bored and (un)consciouly lock out the ad. We did it with pop-up ads and we can do it with this. Much like in Second Life you need to make sure you brand fits with into the world and is realalistic. GCHQ makes perfect sense for some of these first-person shooters and spy/espionage type games. I can’t remember there was a more perfect fit for an in-game ad and a company.

[Via Yahoo News]

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