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Xbox game promo results in 8.3 percent click-through

Activision, publisher of the "Guitar Hero III" game, promoted the launch of the Xbox console game, targeting mobile gamers assuming they have a higher propensity toward other forms of game play.

The company ran a campaign on the Didmo network, with the goal to create a campaign that drives prospects to pre-register their email addresses for the Guitar Hero III community Web site. Activision set a 2 percent click-through goal and aimed to convert 15 percent of the valid emails obtained.

"We were skeptical about the limitations of mobile phone advertising but Didmo converted us into believers," said Anders Rinaldo, Nordic marketing manager for Activision.

"We are confident that the large ad format combined with their unique ability to offer our prospects real value through free mobile game content resulted in a monumental 8.3 percent [click-through rate] and conversion of 11.4 percent of click-throughs into members, far surpassing our expectations," he said.

Activision is the owner and developer of console games such as "Call of Duty," "Spiderman Friend or Foe," "Shrek Ogres and Donkeys," "Tony Hawk's Proving Ground," "Enemy Territory: Quake Wars" and "Bee Movie the Game."

Guitar Hero appeals to entertainment enthusiasts of games, music and film. Sixty percent of the players are male.

The latest campaign targeted mobile subscribers in Sweden who play mobile games, with the average age of 26.

The campaign surpassed Activision's expectations, achieving an 8.3 percent click-through rate, with one-fifth of the click-throughs submitting valid email addresses.

The second campaign generated a 7.1 percent click-through rate, with a 42 percent conversion.

Didmo reviewed the demographics of Activision's target market and selected relevant games from a library of more than 500 games from content providers.

A full-screen ad was delivered with the option for the user to submit an email address to find out more about the soon-to-launch game and community site.

There were four different full screen ads that were shown before and after users selected a game to play.

The campaign ran Oct. 26 -- 30 and then again Feb. 27 -- March 6.

Activision tracked the results of the campaign via Didmo's campaign management platform, which delivers real-time statistics on ad impressions, demographics and click-throughs.

"Between Didmo's approach to mobile ad delivery and the overlapping demographics, Activision ran the campaign and hoped to reach a mass market of consumers who would find interest in Guitar Hero III," said Joseph Oliver, CEO of Didmo.

"Activision's goal was to achieve a click-through rate of at least 2 percent, which the campaign exceeded by an impressive margin," he said.