MACROMEDIA FLASH ADVERTISING ALLIANCE RECOGNIZES EXCELLENCE IN RICH MEDIA AD CAMPAIGNS
Macromedia Flash enables more creative, innovative advertising for leading brand advertisers
San Francisco—June 26, 2002—Macromedia, Inc. (Nasdaq: MACR) today announced that Macromedia Flash is being used by major companies including BMW, Cingular, and Virgin Trains as part of their rich media advertising campaigns. According to AdRelevance, the number of Macromedia Flash ad impressions has increased nine times in the past six months, from 100 million impressions the last week of August 2001 to 907 million for the same week in May. According to a recent DoubleClick Ad Serving Trend Report, click-through rates on rich media ads are six times higher than non-rich media ads. Macromedia also announced the winners of a Macromedia Flash Advertising Alliance (MFAA) contest recognizing excellence and innovation in execution of Macromedia Flash in various advertising campaigns.
"Consumer response to the engaging nature of ads generated with Macromedia Flash is dramatic," said Dominic Gallello, executive vice president, Macromedia. "This translates into great return on investment for advertisers."
In the MFAA contest, POP! Multimedia won for the best use of Macromedia Flash in a rich media e-mail campaign, which drove direct response and aroused people's interest in an Academy Award winning documentary on DVD. glue London, a digital advertising agency, won for the best "in-page" advertisement for its Virgin Trains online business campaign promoting the benefits of traveling by train. The best "out of page" ad went to atmosphereBBDO for its Cingular Spider-Man cross promotion campaign, which was delivered by leading rich media provider Eyeblaster. CNET Networks earned an honorable mention for the highly interactive, rich media content designed to launch its Builder.com website. All of the winning ads are available online at www.macromedia.com/go/mfaawin/.
"Whenever we take on a new advertising campaign, we tend to immediately think of how we can use Macromedia Flash to deliver the most effective campaign," said Keith Alexander, senior producer, atmosphereBBDO. "It gives us more creative options than any other technology, which is why Macromedia Flash has become the de facto standard for online advertising."
Macromedia Flash and Shockwave were used together as part of Fallon Worldwide's BMW Films campaign, which won two Grand Clio awards in the categories of Internet advertising and innovative media. Fallon's BMW campaign featured short films by acclaimed directors such as Ang Lee, Guy Ritchie, and Alejandro Gonzalez Innarritu. Macromedia recently published a resource center for using Macromedia Flash and Shockwave together, as well as outlining the strengths of each technology, at www.macromedia.com/go/flashshock/.
"Our development team, led by Mark Sandau, chose to use both Macromedia Flash and Director because it enabled the team to create a uniquely branded experience both online and on your desktop," said Kevin Flatt, creative director, Fallon Interactive. "The BMW Films series brought together leading film directors, leading web technologies, and a leading automobile brand in a very innovative way. We are incredibly proud to have been recognized in the industry for such a groundbreaking project."
BMW is leading a new charge of mainstream companies aggressively targeting marketing and advertising campaigns online. A recent study by research firm Nielsen/NetRatings found that nine of the top ten rich media ads in the first quarter of 2002 came from non-dotcom companies like State Farm Insurance, Verizon Communications, Procter & Gamble, and General Motors. The study found that companies are turning to rich media technologies like Macromedia Flash for their ability to cut through the clutter of online advertising.
