Top 4 Video Game Brands: Holiday 2013 Vs. 1H 2014
Sony (NYSE: SNE) led the pack last Christmas, but iSpot data shows that another company persevered in 2014.
"When you're talking about gaming, there's definitely the overall trend of the casual game companies getting more and more into the game and upping their spend on TV," Sean Muller, co-founder and CEO of iSpot, told Benzinga. "I think that's sort of one trend where you have just a lot more casual game titles being pushed out there."
iSpot is a real-time TV advertising intelligence platform that monitors the expense, frequency and success of TV ad campaigns. The company recently provided Benzinga with its list of the top four video game brands during the 2013 holiday shopping season and how it compares to the top brands of 2014. These are the brands that drove the most engagement.
"In other words, the ones that are putting out the most interesting ads and campaigns," said Muller.
Click through the slideshow to see the full list.
Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this slideshow.
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#1 (Holiday 2013): PlayStation
"PlayStation and Xbox both ran pretty interesting campaigns during the holiday season," said Muller. "PlayStation's campaign was called 'Perfect Day.' Xbox One was the 'Invitation' campaign. Both of those campaigns are rated very, very highly."
'Perfect Day' received a 9.6 digital effectiveness rating (in terms of engagement), versus the industry average of 5.6.
'Invitation' wasn't far behind -- its rating came in at 9.4.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#2 (Holiday 2013): Supercell
Known for developing a plethora of popular mobile games (such as Clash of Clans and Hay Day), Supercell has an impressive level of brand power.
The company reportedly earns as much as $2.4 million every single day.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#3 (Holiday 2013): Activision
According to iSpot, Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI) spent $58 million promoting its games over last 12 months. Most of that money went to promoting the last Call of Duty.
That investment seems to have paid off, as iSpot's data shows that Activision ranked third last Christmas.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#4 (Holiday 2013): Xbox
Microsoft's new console (and presumably the eight-year-old Xbox 360) came in fourth place.
This might surprise diehard Xbox fans -- especially those who don't like Supercell or Call of Duty.
To be fair, not all of Microsoft's commercials showcased the Xbox's true capabilities. In fact, the first U.S. ad focused on live TV and the NFL. It did not contain any video games.
That could have prevented Xbox from gaining the number-one or number-two spot.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#1 (1H 2014): Supercell
This is one of those "never saw it coming" developments.
Supercell somehow managed to skirt past Sony to become the number-one video game brand during the first half of the year.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#2 (1H 2014): PlayStation
Sony continued to show strength this year, even after the crucial holiday shopping season.
The company has continued to heavily promote its newest console, especially during live sporting events.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#3 (1H 2014): Nintendo
Has Nintendo finally turned a corner?
The video game giant has had a number of problems ever since the Wii U was released.
After having a strong E3 showing and a successful Best Buy event, Nintendo seems to be making headway with consumers.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
#4 (1H 2014): Xbox
Once again, Xbox came in fourth place.
Remember that these rankings only account for last Christmas and the first half of 2014. Now that Microsoft has reduced the price to $399, consumer interest is sure to increase.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons -
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