Top Turkish Title Zula by InGame Group and In-Game Advertising Platform Anzu.io Partner to Bring Dynamic, Personalized Ads Directly Into the Game

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Zula, Turkey’s most popular game in 2019, will employ Anzu

Zula, Turkey’s most popular game in 2019, will employ Anzu.io’s in-game advertising technology to seamlessly immerse world-class dynamic, personalized brand ads directly into the gameplay. This partnership is the first of its kind between Anzu and a Turkish gaming company. With video gaming, streaming viewership, and esports viewership on the rise across the world, the collaboration will give consumer brands a new way to access coveted audiences where they spend their time—inside the game.

The Turkish gaming market, with over 32M gamers as of 2019, represents a colossal, largely untapped opportunity for advertisers. The partnership between Anzu and Zula will give brands, for the first time, the ability to programmatically reach Turkish gamers via Zula’s massive and engaged audience base, which includes a huge chunk of the Turkish gaming market. A free-to-play first-person shooter game created by Lokum Games, Zula takes its players on stealth missions to locations throughout the Middle East, including Istanbul and Northern Iraq, using a hyper-realistic graphic interface. Anzu’s technology will empower Zula to monetize in-game objects, such as walls, billboards, and vehicles, by converting them into highly viewable ads.

In addition to its exponentially-growing player base, Zula will now be able to offer brands access to unique, engaged audiences through viral esports events and Zula-exclusive streamers on YouTube Gaming and Twitch. The biggest sports teams in Turkey have Zula esport teams that regularly attract upwards of 6,425,000 views of their live events. An added bonus—gamers and viewers alike will benefit from in-game ads that directly mimic real-world ads, adding more realism and authenticity to the gameplay.

Anzu, whose other gaming partners include Toplitz,Vivid Games, and many others, brings the sophistication of digital advertising to the in-game advertising space. Through their recent collaboration with Nielsen Connectivity, the company now offers advertisers advanced campaign effectiveness measurement. This offering, along with Anzu’s full suite of AdTech partner solutions, gives brands more confidence than ever to spend in-game. Anzu is the only in-game advertising company licensed to provide services for Xbox game developers and the only solution of its kind to receive ISO 27001 security certification.

“I am honored to partner with Zula, an iconic free-to-play game with stellar graphics and locations that truly aligns with Anzu’s mission of putting gamers first. This collaboration represents an unparalleled opportunity for brands to create amazing, highly-viewable experiences for Zula’s growing audiences. But there’s so much more to this partnership, too. It's no question that Covid-19 has decimated our world economy in so many ways. I feel proud that amidst this turmoil, Anzu can do our part to empower game developers like Zula to bolster their revenue from the A-level, free content they create for their loyal gamers. By offering them a way to monetize their gameplay without harming the user experience, we can play a small role in advancing their goals and rocking the gaming world!,” said Itamar Benedy, co-founder and CEO of Anzu.

“We’re excited to be partnering with Anzu, a solution that allows us to bring world-class brand ads to over 28M Zula gamers without disturbing the gaming experience. We’re a free-to-play game, which means that our players rely on us to provide outstanding experiences without asking them to shoulder the financial burden. This is part of our identity and part of why our gamers are so loyal and dedicated to Zula. Anzu gives us a way to add significant revenues without compromising on anything--a win for us, and a win for the gamers. Let’s play!” said Burak Gözalan co-founder and CEO of InGame Group.

Zula is a free-to-play online first-person shooter game developed in Turkey and owned by Lokum games. In Zula, players will discover real unique locations as Istanbul, Northern Iraq, and other places of the Middle East, as well as indoor maps. Learn more at LokumGames.com.

Anzu.io is an in-game advertising platform that brings real-world brand ads to video gaming and esports. Backed by BITKRAFT Esports Ventures, WPP, and Axel Springer Digital Ventures, Anzu redefines digital advertising through seamless integration of non-intrusive ads into the gameplay. Bringing real-time data and programmatic to the video gaming world, the platform promises native advertising, brand safety, and ad viewability. Learn more at Anzu.io

The article was published on Gamasutra on June 3, 2020.

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