EA denies rumors of in-game advertising in consoles games

Earlier this week, news of Electronic Arts (EA) signing a deal with Simulmedia made the rounds, sparking rumors that the publisher was looking into injecting 15- or 30-second television-style ads into their video games. Naturally, just about everyone was against this.

But with no real details surrounding the agreement, it was mostly speculation. People looked at Simulmedia’s technology, playerWON — which is able to run TV ads within video games — and ran with the notion that it would be used in EA’s video games, particularly its sports titles. Ads in free-to-play video games, especially on mobile, are accepted (although generally not well-received). But ads in console games with premium price tags? Forget about it.

However, EA has now officially responded to this report, straight-up calling it incorrect. Here’s the official statement:

"“Following incorrect reports suggesting that we are looking to introduce ‘TV-style’ commercials into our games, we wanted to clarify that in-game advertising for console games is not something we’re currently looking at, or have signed any agreements to implement. Creating the best possible player experience remains our priority focus.”"

So a few things to take note of here. EA specifically states they are not looking into in-game advertising for consoles, or have signed any agreements for to eventually implement. But the publisher doesn’t rule out mobile games or PC. So it’s possible that this deal with Simulmedia could simply be for mobile games.