iPhone, iPad Spending Still Better Than Android In Early 2012

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According to CCS Insights and Distimo, the iPhone App Store generated daily revenue of $3.34 million, while the iPad generated $2.04 million daily in app sales. While Android sales grew nearly a third to $679,000 per day in January of this year, it is still a fraction of the overall iOS revenue.

In-app purchases represented over 60 percent of the revenues across iOS and Android platforms combined in January, growing to 73 percent in February and accounting for 79 percent if you only counted iPhone apps. While iPad app purchases were down in February, this was attributed to anticipation over the new iPad coming out in March.

Marketing To Kids In A Platform Agnostic Future

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Cable viewership among kids 6-11 was down 13 percent in the first quarter, following a 6 percent decline in Q4 2011. At the same time, 70 percent of children under 12 in homes with tablets use them regularly, and 51 percent of kids between five and eight across all households are on the computer several times a week, signaling a problem for children’s TV programming.

“[Kids] can’t just get on the Internet with the iPad, which is why parents are so comfortable with it,” says Felicia Thomas of ID Media. “Younger children are going to watch television, but children in their teens and tweens know how to get onto the Internet and play video games and watch YouTube, so you’re definitely going to see a shift with the older kids.”

Nickelodeon took a 17 percent year-over-year hit among kids 2-11, the network’s target demographic, down another 25 percent this quarter. With SpongeBob SquarePants streaming online and iCarly slowing down, the network is hoping its music-oriented programs will help turn things around.

“Nickelodeon has no intention of letting the recent ratings slip slow down our creative momentum,” Cyma Zarghami, president of Nick and MTV Networks’ Kids & Family Group.

Advertisers aren’t abandoning Nick just yet. “I don’t think we were ever worried,” says one ad buyer. “You don’t ever want to see a massive ratings drop, [but] our GRPs are guaranteed.”

Meanwhile, Disney is regularly outpacing Nick in the ratings and they are spinning off the Disney Junior programming block (which focuses on the 2-5 demo) into a full-blown network. “We’re pretty much neck and neck with Nick’s [preschool block],” says Gary Marsh, president and CCO of Disney Channels Worldwide.

Nielsen says that viewership among those under 12 was down 2.9 percent last year versus 2010, but it is noted that viewership is fragmented among more networks like The Hub, Disney XD and Sprout all gaining traction.“Television has by far the highest-share viewing among kids,” says Darcy Bowe, associate media director at Starcom. “There’s no evidence that they have decreased their share in viewing. The TV is still king in their world. I don’t think it fragments as much for them.”

Cartoon Network has a smaller audience, but it grew over last year and is pushing the cable-authenticated streaming TV Everywhere initiative. “We have shows up through VOD, through our MSOs and so forth,” says Stu Snyder, president and COO of Cartoon Network.

Still, cross platform can result in mixed blessings – Cartoon Network’s 28 branded games based on Ben 10 moved a total of 10.26 million units and Disney’s Epic Mickey sold just 2.5 million copies, which isn’t quite as much as licenced games used to do in the past. Still, Channel’s TV movie Phineas and Ferb: Across the Second Dimension scored an average of 7.6 million viewers and the seven-day DVR numbers expanded the audience to 10.7 million.

The lesson from all of this is that everyone wants multiplatform entertainment, not just kids, and if they can’t get it from networks, they’ll get it where they can.

Source: AdWeek.com

The Sims Social Gets Unilever Brands

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Electronics Arts has announced that Unilever brands like Pot Noodle, Dove and Domestos will come to The Sims Social. The game has seen in-game promotions for brands like Dunkin’ Donuts and will also include Cornetto and Magnum ice-creams.

“What a great kick off to a year-long, multi-brand relationship between Unilever and EA,” said SVP of global media solutions Dave Madden. “In just a two week period, over one million The Sims Social players redeemed the Dove Hair Spa virtual items in their games. It’s a powerful combination of the right game, the right audience and the right gaming platform showing the success that real-world brands can have reaching highly-engaged players.”

“As the second biggest advertiser in the world and No. 1 in developing and emerging markets, Unilever takes great pride in our pioneering media efforts,” added Unilever’s Luis Di-Como. “We are always looking for new opportunities and innovative ways to engage with our consumers. That’s why we build partnerships that go beyond so-called ‘traditional communication.’ Integrating our brands into popular EA social games like The Sims Social allows us to reach our consumers in a more meaningful and impactful way – where they can have fun and spend time with our brands, thereby creating a deeper emotional connection and loyalty with our brands.”

Global Consumers Like Social Conscious Brands

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According to Nielsen in their 2012 Global Corporate Citizenship Survey, 46 percent of global consumers are willing to pay extra for products and services from companies that show a commitment to social responsibility through their campaigns and programs. Those that responded said they were 62 percent more likely to work for these companies and 59 percent more likely to invest.

“It’s clear that corporate social responsibility efforts resonate with a specific group of consumers,” said Nic Covey, VP of Nielsen Cares, Nielsen’s global corporate social responsibility program. “Marketers need to know who those consumers are in order to maximize the social and business return of their cause marketing efforts. This understanding allows brands to engage in social impact efforts that appeal to the right consumers with the right causes and through the right channels.”

“Knowing what causes are most important to the socially-conscious consumer may help brands prioritize their social investments. The next step is to understand precisely what causes are important to a brand’s individual customers,” said Covey. “Not all consumers expect companies to care about social responsibility, but those that do can be segmented and understood in ways that allow brands to engage in cause marketing that appeals to the right consumers, supports the right causes and engages the right marketing channels.”

Source: BrandChannel.com

ArcadeWeb Survey Shows Economy Pushing Players Free-To-Play

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ArcadeWeb recently surveyed consumers, with 53 percent of gamers polled saying that current economic conditions are changing their gaming habits, and 66 percent of those respondents noting that they now play more games due to the economy. Furthermore, 82 percent of overall respondents claim they have as many or more financial difficulties than they did two years ago.

“The online casual gamers we surveyed clearly indicate that a still-tough economy is having a significant impact on their current gaming behavior,” said Adriano Parrotta, VP, Social Games, ArcadeWeb.com. “Not only do they report playing more – which is great news for the industry – it seems to be fueling the momentum behind the hottest, fastest-growing gaming category, ‘freemium’ or free-to-play models.”

The survey also revealed that 68 percent of respondents never spend money on virtual currency, while 36 percent of male gamers and 30 percent of female users reported making virtual currency purchases. Despite a higher level of average income, 30 percent of those aged 55-64 purchased virtual items, compared to 34 percent of those aged 18-34.

“Because the virtual currency purchasing model is now so widespread at many huge, ‘free’ casual sites on Facebook and beyond, that spend should grow somewhat overall in 2012,” stated Parotta. “But our survey reveals a powerful resistance to pay-for-play models by casual gamers, and real traction for models that are ‘purely free,’ or even ‘beyond free’ – sites that offer users free games and a chance to win real rewards or money.”

58 percent of those surveyed said they were looking to reduce their online gaming spending, with a mere 7 percent saying they’d spend more. Clearly, while more players were willing to pay for virtual items, the economy makes them less willing to spend more.

Epic T-Shirt Contest For The Dark Knight Rises

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Design By Humans is looking for several artistic humans to design epic t-shirts, inspired by the upcoming, highly anticipated film The Dark Knight Rises, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures. This exclusive contest is a rare opportunity for anyone to produce artwork for one of the most renowned movie entities on the planet and have a chance to get your design seen by the art department at Warner Bros. and The Dark Knight Rises filmmakers. From the top 10 finalists selected, the top 3 winners will be chosen by The Dark Knight Rises Director/Writer/Producer Christopher Nolan and Producer Emma Thomas. Collectively, finalists will have the opportunity to win up to $12,500 in prize money for their winning t-shirt design, with the top prize being $3,500. The contest starts now and we will be accepting submissions until April 11 at midnight.

A Music Video Game Starring Jasmine Villegas

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Microsoft is showing off the power of HTML5 and Internet Explorer with an interactive music video for teen star Jasmine Villegas. An interactive HTML5-driven experience that pushes the boundaries of what HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3 can achieve, the video is a remix of Villegas’ hit song, Just a Friend and it lives at JustAFriend.ie {link no longer active}. Various technical tricks that have gone into the experience are worth checking out for web lovers and developers alike. Once users enter the video — which integrates with Facebook — they become part of the experience. In addition to watching the video, users can take part in mini-games within the video itself, with their actions altering what appears on screen.