Hey all!

Welcome to Edition #54.

Today we’ll be diving into Roblox’s rewarded ads launch, how Meta may use the UFC as a testbed for their latest products & innovations, and G2 Esports launch into the Kings League Germany.

Enjoy!

Contents: Edition #54

• Roblox launch Rewarded Ads

• Meta becomes UFC’s Official Fan Technology partner

• G2 Esports launches football club in Kings League

Roblox launch Rewarded Ads

Roblox has announced the launch of Rewarded Video ads, allowing users aged 13 and above to watch 30-second advertisements in exchange for in-game rewards like currency or power-ups.

To scale, Roblox is partnering with Google's advertising division, enabling brands and agencies to purchase these immersive ad formats programmatically. Early tests have shown high completion rates, with collaborations with measurement firms such as Cint, DoubleVerify, Integral Ad Science, Kantar, and Nielsen to improve insights and tracking.

Why should you care?

TL;DR: Roblox just opened the door to a new way of doing ads, and they’re doing it alongside Google. Rewarded video ads are opt-in, offering users in-game perks for 30 seconds of their attention. Early signs are showing that the audience is receptive to their integration - but will it become a core monetisation tool for devs, or could it pull marketing dollars directly to Roblox and away from the dev community?

In full:

Making Roblox a haven for ad dollars has long been the strategy for the platform - and this launch and partnership with Google is a rather large step in making that a reality.

Now, the mobile gamers amongst you will be very familiar with the concept of rewarded ads.

They’re somewhat straightforward, with the value exchange being that the player watches a short video in return for something useful in-game; a currency, power-up or cosmetic perhaps. 

They’re less intrusive, offer instant gratification and as the player has the choice to engage, or not, there’s generally more of an acceptance of their integration - with Unity Ads finding that 71% actually preferred this ad format over in-app purchases.

But it’s not just the most preferred - it’s also proved to be a successful tool for developers to drive engagement and purchases, with players 4.5x times more likely to make a purchase & spending 34% more time on the game if they have engaged with a rewarded ad (per Tapjoy).

And those are the type of numbers that will get Roblox, Google, advertisers and media buyers excited, especially as ad inventory within Roblox has just become programmatically accessible to any advertiser running through Google’s stack.

So, amongst all the excitement, what are the potential knock-on effects here if you’re a developer, brand or player?

Developer:

→ Pro: New monetisation opportunities without impacting gameplay / focusing on cosmetics to drive revenue

→ Con: Could it see more brands focus their budgets towards programmatic ad buys rather than building experiences? Will Roblox be king making this approach given their ad targets vs referring to their developer community?

Brand:

→ Pro: The tie-up with Google means uniformity in comparing the success of campaigns in Roblox to any other media channel. This is super important in the fight to persuade advertisers and media agencies to shift budgets.

→ Pro: It gives a more intuitive, targeted way for brands to engage with audiences within a game. The opt-in nature of the ads means they can be certain of interaction rather than the ads being consumed passively.

→ Con: I hope we don’t see 2D adverts in a 3D environment, which can feel clunky. The immersion and interactivity that integration into UGC games offers shouldn’t be underestimated. There’s value in advertising being a first step for a brand into the space, but a deeper, more targeted presence in relevant experiences will ultimately be where fandom is built with players.

Players:

→ Pro: A new way to elevate their presence in-game without having to spend dollars, and best of all, it’s on their terms.

→ Con: The relevance and frequency of ads will be important. If they don’t align or are too long/intrusive, it’ll be detrimental to the experience.


It’ll likely take time for behaviours to shift from a player, developer and advertiser perspective, but having more ad infrastructure in place to support brands entering the platform can only be a good thing, and hopefully it continues to make it more feasible for creators to continue doing what they do best on the platform - creating fun games for players.

Last week we dropped the news that NFL, Volkswagen, Baller League and more were joining us for SEG3 London.

This week? MLS, Roblox, London Marathon, Universal Pictures and more are the latest additions the lineup for 10 - 11 June.

You can see everyone announced so far here.

And yep, you still get 20% off your pass with the code: TS3R20

Be part of the conversation this summer 👇

Meta becomes UFC’s Official Fan Technology partner

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Meta have entered into a multiyear partnership to enhance fan engagement.

This collaboration will integrate Meta's AI, Meta Glasses, Meta Quest, and social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram & Threads into UFC events.

Why should you care?

TL;DR: Meta’s new long-term deal with the UFC doesn’t seem to just a sponsorship, it’s a full-stack integration of platforms, products and tech into one of the most culturally dominant sports on the planet. For the UFC, it’s providing access to cutting-edge tech, development expertise and a route to a potential new business model less reliant on traditional media. For Meta, its eyeballs, engagement and a chance to make its ecosystem of platforms, AI and hardware more useful to a young, global audience.

In full:

Meta and UFC have formalised a long-term partnership that includes:

• AI tools to analyse and shape fighter rankings

• VR & 360º content inside Horizon Worlds

• Exclusive, original content across Facebook, Instagram and Threads

• Behind-the-scenes storytelling and training insights

Without being too provocative, the value that technology businesses can bring vs other partner categories, at this point in time, is unchallenged. Especially those that are willing to work hand-in-hand and fund R&D/innovation initiatives.

And Meta can definitely do that, and have most certainly been building - whether that be Horizon Worlds, Meta Quest headsets or LLaMA 4, their AI. So for the UFC, there’s scope for this partnership to help them to:

Navigate the constant barrage of technological innovation

→ Technology is infiltrating every part of fans' lives, at a greater pace than ever before. The UFC, and all sports brands, need to continually be evolving their live event and content products to keep up with fan expectations. More immersion. More access. More drama/entertainment etc.

Having a tech behemoth who has the capabilities and know-how to integrate emerging technologies into these products and experiences is going to be an unfair advantage for the UFC, and with the release calling out that they’ll “introduce innovation and enhancements to the UFC experience for fans everywhere”, it seems we’ll be seeing a steady stream of releases shortly.

Find a new business model that allows the UFC to grow the brand and fandom globally

→ The current model in sports will continue to work for the short-term. Older generations have disposable income, and have it ingrained to pay for content.

This just isn’t the case with younger generations. YouTube, TikTok etc have given young audiences content at their fingertips for free throughout their life, meaning consumption habits have immeasurably changed.

This is impacting traditional media business models, and given media rights have been the cornerstone of the sports business model for decades, a new model with less reliance on this revenue stream will need to emerge for sports to sustain itself.

My belief? Leveraging new technologies and platforms that can help centre the business model around a leagues/teams fan will be the next step, and so having access to the development resource of Meta as part of the partnership is incredibly valuable in the UFC’s journey toward finding that new, sustainable, fan and technology led business model.

And for Meta? Given their extensive investment into new technologies, platforms and hardware, they’re now at the point where they need to drive eyeballs, users and customers to them, and they’ll be hoping the UFC can give them:

1. Exclusive Content
   → To drive the UFC, and wider combat sports conversation to Meta channels. Reportedly 90% of users to Threads are US based, whereas just shy of 7% of the UFC’s audience is reportedly US based, so there’s a big global growth opportunity.
   

2. A testing ground for their latest products
   → Product integration into the sport offers Meta a testbed to learn and improve their products for their target audience, all whilst putting them front and centre to the UFC fanbase.

Really, the value exchange here is: Meta gives them the tools, technology and expertise; and the UFC gives them the content, global reach and a testing ground.

So, one to watch to see how Meta’s ecosystem is integrated into the UFC’s live-event and digital experiences, and whether it can help shift the needle for Meta, who must be sweating having invested the family treasures without sizeable returns as of yet from their immersive endeavours.

G2 Esports launches football club in Kings League

G2 Esports is making its first foray into traditional sports by launching G2 Football Club, which will compete in the recently launched Kings League Germany. This 7-a-side global football league, founded by former FC Barcelona player Gerard Piqué, has recently launched in Germany, with G2 FC participating in the Kings World Cup Qualifiers in Germany ahead of the Kings World Cup in June.

Why should you care?

TL;DR: G2 joining the Kings League isn’t just about playing football, it’s about playing the content game. The lines between sports, gaming and entertainment are totally blurred, and fans don’t live in silos anymore - they bounce between platforms, scenes and passions. G2 get that, and by stepping into a league built for creators, they’re unlocking new storylines, new moments and new ways to show up in other parts of pop culture.

In full: Esports moving into sports? I think I’ve heard this story before, but in reverse!

But it’s a sign of the times.

The convergence of industries is accelerating. Fans do not start and finish with your brand. They have multiple interests and alliances to brands across culture as part of their identity.

Bad news? It means more competition for eyeballs and dollars.

Good news? More opportunity to build an ecosystem around your brand that expands into other parts of culture, supplementing and attracting new audiences to the core product.

And for G2, launching into the Kings League not only grows their presence into a complementary adjacent industry, but it broadens their content and storytelling capabilities.

Kings League, like Baller League and other entertainment driven, small-sided football leagues, are creator-first and entertainment led.

And therefore type of content that G2 can create from their involvement can be less about success and high-performance (which is arguably what their esports fanbase wants to see), and more about the moments and stories that can travel and translate off the pitch.

So for anyone looking for a case study of how to grow audience, find new storylines and remain culturally sticky - this is a good one to take inspiration from.

In other news this week…

• Minecraft movie smashes $163m in first weekend takings in US to become highest opening video game movie of all time: read here.

• Epic Games acquires Loci to improve IP Protection across ecosystem: read here.

• San Jose Earthquakes launch AI Chatbot powered by Theta Labs: read here.

• Netflix & Hasbro to launch all-in-one Peppa Pig app with mini-games and more: read here.

• NBC Sports’ PGA Tour coverage delivers viewership gains: read here.

• WPP buys InfoSum for AI push: read here.

• Deutsche Telekom strengthens ties with Google Cloud: read here.

• The Gang launch Electric State Tower Defense in Netflix’s Nextworld on Roblox: read here.

• Doodles generate $400k in revenue in 15 minutes through Telegram stickers: read here.

• BLAST & Reliance announce Joint Venture to accelerate growth of esports in India: read here.

• What if games focused on re-acquisition rather than retention?: read here.

• The Gang launch UGC Gaming insight tool: read here.

Working on anything cool, or have a press release you would like us to cover? Send it in for the chance for it to be covered in next week’s edition!

That’s all for now folks - thanks again for reading the latest edition of The SEG3 Report and if you found it of interest, do consider sharing with a friend!