What Nas’ use of AudioMob means for the future of music marketing

Over the past few years, both the music and mobile gaming industries have faced challenges with changes in technology. With easier ways of creating music alongside distribution, over-saturation has become a huge issue. Standing out in a crowded field is more of a difficult process now than ever for artists both new and old. 

Meanwhile, the rise of mobile gaming has created a space where there are nearly 800,000 games available for major pocket operating systems iOS and Android. With 2.8 billion mobile users preferring free-to-play(F2P) over one-off payment models, mobile gaming developers monetise through in-app transactions and in-game advertising. In-game advertising for mobile games accounts for over half of mobile game monetisation efforts according to reports. This is more than microtransactions and games requiring direct payment to play. 

The issue with standard advertisement solutions like video and banner ads is that they can be intrusive to gameplay. This means that mobile gaming developers not only risk frustrating players enough to reduce retention rates, but they are potentially impacting advertisers’ brand safety as well. 

AudioMob’s innovative audio ad-tech platform provides a comprehensive solution for both industries. Most recently, the scale-up company successfully raised $14 million for its series 'A funding from funders' including Google, Linkfire, Makers Fund and Lightspeed Venture Partners. With a business valuation reaching $100 million, Linkfire CEO Lars Ettrup said that “investing in AudioMob was a natural step and continues to empower entertainment discovery using in-game audio ads".

By delivering non-interruptive audio ads to mobile games, developers can avoid those risks that eventually disrupt retention. At the same time, marketing teams are essentially introducing their artists to an untapped market. Be mindful that data has shown that a vast majority of gaming audiences listen to music while gaming - gamers stream music 2.1x more than the average consumer.

Our ad tech platform is a simple yet powerful tool for advertisers and brands. Developers using rendering engine Unity can easily integrate non-interruptive ads. Brands and music artists from KFC to Justin Bieber have all utilised AudioMob during various promotional campaigns. 

Most recently, legendary MC Nas utilised the platform for his 14th full-length album 'Kings Disease II'. Released in August through label Mass Appeal, the collaborative project with super-producer Hit-Boy (Beyoncé, Rihanna, Nipsey Hussle) served as the sequel to the Grammy-winning 2020 album 'Kings Disease' and featured guest appearances from other hip hop icons including Eminem and Lauryn Hill. 

Through in-game audio ads, Nas directly addressed players himself as a sample of the record played in the background during gameplay. Users were later pointed to a banner that linked them to the full LP. Compared to the typical click-through rate offered by traditional in-game banners, results for audio ads for 'Kings Disease II' leapt 1275%. 

Because of the ability to deliver non interrupting in-game audio ads anywhere quickly, gamers in countries like the UK, United States, Australia, Canada, Germany and Brazil were able to hear the ad on various F2P games. Nas and the team at Mass Appeal were more than satisfied with the end results. 

"The AudioMob team seamlessly guided us into the mobile gaming ad landscape,” said Mass Appeal Director of Marketing, Celeste Li. “The platform has an expansive reach and is an exciting opportunity to connect with even more fans. This is a helpful tool to add to your marketing toolkit."

Nas joins other notable hip hop artists such as Sugar Hill Gang and Tee Grizzley who have reached high engagement levels above 2000% during their respective campaigns. Bridging the gap between audio and mobile gaming has been key to AudioMob’s success in the digital ad tech space. Studies have shown that 75% of consumers prefer to have audio ads in mobile game experiences as opposed to video and banner ads that intrude upon gameplay. 

Besides supporting volume detection where audio ads pause if a user’s mobile device volume is below 30%, ads from AudioMob can also enhance a gameplay loop through instant rewards. Instant rewards grants things like in-game currency and power-ups for completely hearing the ad. This ensures advertisers have their ads heard and developers can rest easier knowing gamers aren’t annoyed by intrusive ads. As mentioned earlier, mobile game developers and music artists’ marketing teams are able to utilise resources more efficiently.  

As the audio revolution is coming to the fore, mainstream music labels such as Warner Music Group and Sony Music group are taking notice. This is by properly serving non-interruptive in-game audio ads to an untapped market that’s already receptive to music.