Examining the Influence of Telepresence on Spectator and Player Processing of Real and Fictitious Brands in a Computer Game

Despite the growth of embedded brands in entertainment media, few theory-based studies have assessed consumer processing of brand placements in games. This study contrasted the influence of media context (play, watch) and psychological response (telepresence) on consumer recall, game liking, and perceived persuasion for real and fictitious brands in a racing game. Results show that playing the game impeded recall, but had no effect on game liking or perceived persuasion across brands. Telepresence and game liking were positively related to perceived persuasion for real and fictitious brands, with telepresence mediating the effect of game liking on perceived persuasion for real brands. Results are explained according to cognitive capacity and media context effects. "Where have all the young men gone? " asked advertisers after reviewing television ratings for the 2003-2004 season (Shields 2005). It seems that the answer may be found in games. About 150 million people in the United States, or 63% of the popula tion, play video games (McClellan 2005), and advertisers are taking notice. For instance, Coca-Cola and McDonald's shifted dollars from broadcast to in-game advertising (Grover et al. 2004). Although representing a small proportion of overall me dia budgets, spending on advertisements in electronic games totaled $185 million in 2005 according to the Yankee Group (McClellan 2005). A Nielsen report suggested, "video games are quickly becoming the most effective medium for reaching consumers via product integration" (McClellan 2005, p. 9). The practice is poised to become a five billion dollar industry (Leeper 2004), due in part to Nielsen metrics (Gough 2004) and structured costs (Moran 2004). Despite the growth and potential of this medium, relatively little is known about how consumers process brands in this interactive entertainment context. Our research builds on an emerging body of research in the gaming context (e.g., Chaney, Lin, and Chaney 2004; Grigorovici and Constantin 2004; Lee 2004b; Nelson 2002, 2005; Ron 1996; Schneider and Cornwell 2005) and expands on two areas that offer promise for theoretical and managerial understanding. First, research demonstrates the influence of media-induced psychological re sponses such as telepresence (i.e., the sense of being transported inside a mediated environment; see Steuer 1992) on recall and persuasion of embedded brands (Grigorovici and Constantin 2004). However, studies to date have only examined the inter active task of game playing on processing. Because games offer a special form of interactivity that presents opportunities for both playing and watching, and because playing can enhance a sense of telepresence (Lessiter et al. 2001), we test the influ ence of playing or watching on respondents' telepresence and brand processing. Second, past research in the gaming environment has exam ined real brands (Grigorovici and Constantin 2004; Schneider and Cornwell 2005), fictitious brands (Chaney et al. 2004; Lee 2004b), or a mixture of real and fictitious embedded brands (Nelson 2002; Ron 1996). These latter studies reported that fictitious brands suffer on post-play memory tasks (Chaney et al. 2004; Lee 2004b; Nelson 2002). However, such studies do not generally delve into the factors that influence processing or persuasion, nor do they systematically contrast effectiveness for brands of the same products that differ in familiarity. Games contain real and fictitious brands, such as spoofs like New York Time in the Max Payne game, or brands that are perceived as fictitious because they are unavailable in certain markets (Nelson, Keum, and Yaros 2004). For instance, participants in an in-game advertising study in Australia indicated that they recalled brands such as Ralliart and Castrol because they were familiar with the brands, but they did not recall Union 76 (Schneider and Cornwell 2005). The researchers suggest that a lack of cultural awareness of U.S. brands (e.g., Union 76) influenced the results. They recommend that "the use of ficti tious brand names embedded in video games would allow the researcher more control over past brand exposure experience, Michelle R. Nelson (Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign) is an associate professor of advertising, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Ronald A. Yaros (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) is an assistant professor of communication, University of Utah. Heejo Keum (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) is an assistant professor of mass communication and journalism, Sung kyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea. Journal of Advertising, vol. 35, no. 4 (Winter 2006), pp. 87-99. 2006 American Academy of Advertising. All rights reserved. ISSN 0091-3367 / 2006 $9.50 + 0.00. DOI 10.2753/JOA0091-3367350406 This content downloaded from 207.46. 13.114 on Thu, 26 May 2016 06:55:45 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor. org/terms 88 ThejJournal of Advertising thus permitting an examination of the video game exposure in isolation" (p. 339). Processing differences for brands that vary in familiarity have been discussed in other types of advertising research (e.g., recall: Kent and Allen 1994; persuasion: Machleit, Allen, and Madden 1993). Yet no research to date has examined underly ing factors for processing real and fictitious brands in a game context where cognitive capacity is limited (e.g., Chaney et al. 2004). Thus, this experimental study compares effects of telepresence on real and fictitious brand recall, perceived game liking, and perceived brand persuasion effects for players and watchers. It furthers understanding of consumer processing across real-life exposure situations within a new and growing medium, extends theory on brand placement, and underscores the importance of context effects (e.g., telepresence, game lik ing) and brand familiarity for brand placement effectiveness.