Hong Kong ad firm Pixels launches new tools for multi-platform content using HTML5 on cusp of expected mobile advertising boom
Pixels, Hong Kong’s largest digital advertising sales company, announced a new set of tools on Monday dedicated to mobile advertising that it claims will help its clients reach a wider audience and tap media-savvy youngsters.
These include three HTML5 ad formats built into apps: ActiVoice, Vrical and Real Time Weather.
ActiVoice enables voice-activated searches, similar to Apple’s Siri; Vrical lets advertisers showcase their products using 360-degree photos; and Real Time Weather automatically customises the selection of mobile ads based on the current temperature and weather conditions.
READ MORE: Spotify targets wider digital advertising in Hong Kong
The tools have also been designed to help publishers seek out new profit streams as the traditional print media business experiences a downturn, the company added.
“When it came time to develop a new set of creative modules for mobile, it seemed natural to us that speech, weather and panoramic views should be involved,” said Pixels CEO Kevin Huang.
“We are talking about phones, after all, and users have naturally performed these actions on their mobiles at one time or another.”
Pixels was formed by a merger of Pixel Media, Snap Mobile and Adsfactor. It said the new multimedia tools are focused on the increasingly popular HTML5 format.
Some industry watchers consider this the best solution for content presented seamlessly on multiple platforms - from desktop to mobile, and iPhone to Android.
READ MORE: Digital campaigns boost HK advertising market
Pixel’s partners include online music-streaming service Spotify and iQiyi, often dubbed the “Netflix of China”. Hong Kong partners include Mingpao News, the city’s leading Chinese-language newspaper, and digital media outlets like The Stand News and Post852.
In Hong Kong, as in many countries and regions around the world, both advertisers and publishers have been struggling to find ways of making content more presentable on platforms of various shapes and sizes. The shift to mobile in terms of consuming news and making purchases has made this even more important.
“We expect to see a surge in demand from advertisers who will shift an even greater share of their ad budgets to digital, with mobile being the centre of their advertising activities,” said Huang.
Demand for ads on mobiles and multiple screens will likely shoot up in Hong Kong next year, he added.
Meanwhile, mobile advertising revenue climbed to US$8.2 billion in the United States in the first half of this year, up 54 per cent from the same period in 2013, according to a report by the Interactive Advertising Bureau.
In Hong Kong, mobile advertising makes up just 3 per cent of the total market but its share is growing rapidly.
Part of the attraction of HTML5 is how it can make content more easily digestible online and on mobile. It quickly won over fans after it was introduced late last year.
The website of business-focused digital media outlet Quartz is one of the most striking examples of how this has been put to best use. Quartz is owned by Atlantic Media.
