The iPad is the first platform that combines the engagement of television advertising for branding with the interactivity of online, which encourages people to take action, according to Rhythm NewMedia.

More than 200 Fortune 500 brands have run ads across Rhythm?s ad network since the iPad launched in April 2010. With the recent launch of the iPad 2, Rhythm has seen a large surge in interest from advertisers wanting to be a part of the best selling tablet device to date.

?The iPad is the perfect canvas for video advertisements because it has the same or better emerging characteristics as TV,? said Ujjal Kholi, CEO of Rhythm, San Francisco. A person using the iPad is completely emerged in the experience, holding it in their lap with both hands and likely not doing anything else simultaneously.

?They are emotionally engaged,? he said. ?Brands are advertising on the iPad because of that.?

Fatal attraction
Another reason that brands are so attracted to the iPad is the fact that they are used to glossy magazine-like ads, which are full-page units, unlike online ads, which compete with one another on the same Web page.

With the iPad, brands can opt for that glossy full-page ad they are used to in traditional media.

?The iPad is the most exciting advertising opportunity that has come around since the advent of the Internet and search,? Mr. Kohli said. ?Search was great for transactional stuff because the consumer tells you what they are looking for.

?But on the brand side TV was the last big thing in brand advertising,? he said. ?That was 50 years ago. Now there is the iPad."

Consumers can immerse themselves into a video and then when it is over, brands can include calls to action including: tap to Like on Facebook, tap to Tweet, tap to follow on Twitter, tap to shop on Amazon.com, tap to Fandango, tap to YouTube, tap to Android Market and tap to find a closest store location. These various calls to action make video ads interactive for the first time.

Servicing media buyers
With the iPad, both TV and digital buyers can prosper.

Digital ad buyers can buy their 15-second in-stream ads and TV buyers can repurpose their television ads on the iPad.

A recent study by Rhythm claims that consumers are willing to watch longer forms of video advertising on the iPad.

When watching TV, there are four or five commercials per break. But on the iPad it is just one ad, so consumers are less inclined to take a bathroom break or change the channel, like they would on TV.

?Classically, video ads are about people liking your products and then you make offers in other channels to get people to buy your product,? Mr. Kohli said. ?The iPad is the first medium where you can do both.

?You can get immersion with the video and then get them to take part in the offer via interactivity added to the video,? he said. ?Brands that combine immersion and interactivity with their video campaigns on the iPad can increase their click-through rates by up to 50 percent.?

Final Take
Volvo achieved significant brand lift and interaction from mobile video ads.
/>