Press Start: Engage Players and Boost Your Brand with Microsoft Advertising

As the world increasingly turns to digital entertainment, gaming has emerged as a popular activity, connecting people across the globe. Gaming is no longer niche; it's a universal hobby many people enjoy, with 3.4 billion players worldwide,¹ the industry is forecasted to reach a staggering $274 billion by 2025.² This growth outpaces other entertainment verticals, highlighting gaming's appeal.

For brands and marketers, gaming offers untapped potential to effectively engage with their audiences.

Global footprint. Universal appeal. 

People of all ages and genders love gaming. Its universal appeal is reflected by the diversity of its audience with 48% of players identifying as female, the average player age being 33 years old, and the typical duration of consumers playing video games spanning 21 years. Impressively, 76% of players fall into the 18+ age group.³ Given gaming’s undeniable popularity the key question to ask is: how do we reach our gaming audience?

Overcoming in-game advertising misconceptions

Despite the growth, high engagement, and vast audience, in-game advertising is not without its challenges. Supply access is fragmented, communicating with audiences is a nuanced endeavor, and the larger opportunities of engaging with players outside of play have yet to be realized. While these are current challenges, many in the industry are working towards solving them. Now is the time for marketers to start educating themselves on the opportunities within gaming and understanding how players as a target audience fit into their broader marketing strategy. 

One place to start is to challenge the historic misconceptions surrounding gaming as an advertising channel. Prevailing misconceptions have led brands to overlook this rising media channel. In contrast to these misconceptions, consider the following:

• Audience diversity - the data shows gaming appeals to a wide range of people, so we encourage your teams to reconsider if your audience plays games.
• Brand safety - while some gaming titles may contain mature content and violence, there is quality inventory available across various game genres with devoted followings. Marketers should become familiar with game titles and their players to avoid overlooking opportunities that align with their goals.
• Scaled activation - accessing quality inventory and reaching players is possible through programmatic options.
• Full-funnel performance - in-game advertising can deliver on key objectives, including conversions.
• Measurement - advertisers can access granular reports and effective optimization and measurement options for in-games ads.

Microsoft Advertising is here to change the narrative by offering advertisers opportunities to connect with their audience through the joy of gaming.

In-game ads reach players where they play

With deep gaming roots, Microsoft is taking in-game advertising to new heights, helping brands connect with plugged-in audiences through scaled reach, premium content, and immersive experiences. Hundreds of millions of players spending millions of minutes playing monthly make scaled campaigns a reality. Microsoft’s iconic family of brands boasts a prestigious history of top gaming titles. From Candy Crush Saga to Solitaire, Microsoft’s gaming titles offer brand-safe environments that span across screens—consoles, PCs, and mobile devices—ensuring broad reach. Brands can engage players and deepen brand affinity through experiences like rewarded video, interstitials, and other formats that offer high-completion and viewability.

Microsoft’s diverse and engaged gaming audience

At Microsoft, we’re passionate about delivering the joy of gaming to everyone on the planet. Our gaming audience is a vibrant mix of players spanning a wide range of age demographics. In fact, approximately 60 percent of Microsoft players are Millennials aged 25–49, savvy internet users with strong purchasing power. Our players are not your average audience. They are media-savvy, with an impressive 79 percent spending more time with media compared to the general population.⁴ Whether it’s gaming, streaming, or browsing, they’re deeply engaged. Plus, they’re not tied to a single screen. With multi-device browsing our audience seamlessly switch between devices, creating opportunities for cross-channel campaigns.

Microsoft players are also video and CTV enthusiasts. A remarkable 41 percent of our audience leans toward video/CTV streaming—twice as much as the general population.⁴ This opens up exciting possibilities for creative campaign executions that bridge CTV and gaming experiences.

Connecting with players across our ecosystem

Microsoft Advertising offers a precise and impactful way to connect with in-market players, helping you find your ideal customer and navigate their unpredictable consumer journey using our rich first-party data. Global, programmatically available audience segments are ready for self-serve targeting—exclusively from Microsoft Advertising. These segments allow you to connect with 160 million players across our diverse consumer properties like MSN, MCG, Outlook, Microsoft 365, and Bing. Whether you’re targeting casual players, puzzle enthusiasts, or strategy lovers you can scale your campaigns across devices, formats, and our diverse consumer properties.

Microsoft will be bringing Xbox console advertising sales in-house in 2025 under Activision Blizzard Media to consolidate and streamline buying options in this critical category.

Activate premium, gaming deals

Advertisers have the power to connect with their audience within the dynamic world of gaming. By tapping into this kinetic and enjoyable medium, advertisers can engage with players on a personal level, creating meaningful interactions that resonate. Via our premium gaming deals, we’re simplifying access to gaming media and the activation of gaming campaigns.

Now you can quickly get your gaming campaigns started with options such as:

• Microsoft Gaming - 100% Rewarded Video, our premium Microsoft Games inventory exclusively features rewarded video content. Expect brand-safe environments and blockbuster titles like Candy Crush and Solitaire.
• Run of Rewarded Video - drive engagement and brand affinity with high-completion, highly viewable videos. This inventory includes content from Activision Blizzard, Microsoft Casual Games, and partner gaming publishers.
• Run of Gaming Video - for maximum reach, explore our run-of-network gaming ecosystem supply. This option spans both in-stream and interstitial placements, featuring content from Activision Blizzard, Microsoft, and partner gaming publishers.
• Cross-Screen: Scaled premium CTV partner supply paired with Activision Blizzard mobile gaming supply drives brand awareness and brand affinity across the most engaged with screens.
• Gaming CTV: Gaming-specific CTV supply accessed through gaming consoles paired with Activision Blizzard mobile gaming supply to tap into a unique audience of highly engaged consumers passionate about gaming.

Microsoft Advertising offers unique gaming video supply that delivers outstanding results including high viewability and high completion in brand-safe environments. Our first-party properties achieve an impressive 93 percent viewability rate,⁴ demonstrating your message reaches the player. Not only do our players watch but they also complete, with 85% of Microsoft Casual Games videos being watched to completion.⁴ Additionally, Activision Blizzard Media rewarded videos boast a remarkable 97 percent completion rate,⁵ while Microsoft Start rewarded videos achieve 92 percent completion.⁴

Join us today 

Microsoft’s gaming audience is diverse, media-savvy, and passionate about video content. As gaming continues to evolve, Microsoft Advertising remains at the forefront, empowering advertisers to harness the power of this dynamic and ever-growing platform. With Microsoft, brands can create meaningful connections with players, driving engagement and building lasting relationships.

Join us as we provide a powerful platform to activate premium gaming deals, reaching engaged audiences across vast gaming content. Contact your Microsoft Advertising representative today to get started.