Mobile Gamers Prefer Rewarded Video Ads

A new study by mobile platform Tapjoy finds that mobile gamers want their apps free and their ads rewarded.

In fact, survey respondents in the U.S. prefer opt-in, rewarded ads over pre-roll videos by a 4-to-1 margin.

And videos are consumers’ favorite type of rewarded ads on mobile, preferred by at least 6 x over playable ads, app installs, surveys, and other types of advertising offers.

Rewarded videos, optional and skippable, invite consumers to earn free access to additional content or new features in mobile apps by watching the video or otherwise engaging with brands.

Among the study’s other findings:

So-called “freemium” apps are preferred over paid apps: A majority of consumers prefer their mobile apps to be supported by opt-in, rewarded advertising (54%), rather than mandatory ads such as pre-roll videos (32%) or by paid downloads (14%).

Consumers are willing to watch more than four videos per day: More than half of U.S. consumers -- 51% -- said they’re willing to watch at least four videos per day in exchange for rewards. Thirty-seven percent said they’d watch six or more videos per day.

Humorous videos get the most attention: Forty-four percent of consumers say that humorous content most appeals to them when watching video ads on mobile. The next most popular genres were ads that featured storytelling (28%), product demonstrations (26%), and special effects (24%).

Movie trailers are most-liked category: More than half (55%) of consumers say that ads for movies & entertainment are most likely to interest them, followed by ads for food & restaurants (46%), retailers (25%), fitness & healthcare (22%), and local services (19%).

Sex and celebrity aren’t that popular: Ads with sex appeal (13%) or a famous celebrity (13%) were among the least popular types of ads, although men were more likely to say they enjoyed ads with sex appeal than women.

“One of the most important takeaways from this report is the fact that consumers are practically demanding rewarded ads within mobile apps. Mandatory ads like pre-roll videos and forced pop-ups might be okay on the Internet and even on mobile Web pages, but mobile apps present a different dynamic between advertisers and consumers,” Shannon Jessup, chief revenue officer of Tapjoy, told Digital News Daily via email.

Jessup explained that consumers love rewarded video ads "not only because they're easy to complete and provide valuable, premium in-app content for the user -- but because they provide a strong entertainment factor as well."

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