Online video firm launches new ad format to challenge pre-rolls

Posted by Alisa Zykova on December 30, 2008 at 5:18 PM

Online video enterprise Blinx has released optimised advertising technology called the Un-roll Unit that may help boost profits from videos on the Internet, MediaGuardian reported Monday. The video format entails overlay ads and logos that reappear throughout an online video during "contextually relevant moments," according to a Reuters report Monday.

Instead of having a longer pre-roll, which viewers may dislike, the technology unravels digital curtains with an advertiser's logo and immediately starts the video. Ads or click-through links are added in certain areas and towards the end of the clip, and a click-through to a sponsor's site may be inserted. The system is being employed by Shell Oil through its agency, MediaCom.

According to MediaGuardian, video viewing amongst Web users has grown. However, even if users are shifting focus away from TV and toward the Internet, advertisers may be lagging behind. Revenue from online videos may not be as great as from search or display ads.

"The exponential growth of online video - both long- and short-form - presents tremendous opportunities for advertisers and publishers alike," said MediaCom's Director of Digital Stefan Bardega, according to Reuters.

PricewaterhouseCoopers predicted that by 2012 the Internet's advertising market will be worth around US$120 billion. Meanwhile, Forrester Research speculated that by the same time, the online video ad industry across the globe will amount to US$7.2 billion, according to MediaGuardian.