Microsoft Advertising partners with ad agencies to develop Windows 8 apps

The partner agencies—Y&R, Razorfish, AKQA, Big Spaceship, Team Detroit and UM—will work with Microsoft Advertising to pilot ideas for ad supported apps for Windows 8.

Microsoft Advertising said Windows 8 will support a range of ad formats, from standard display formats such as the 300x250 banner, to “immersive rich media ad solutions”.

Partnering with outside agencies will ultimately result in the best consumer ad experiences, according to the company.

“By leveraging the actual agencies that will utilise ads in apps, we are able to better guide the direction of the platform and elevate the creativity and engagement level,” a spokesperson said.

Microsoft Advertising said developers will be able to choose whether to monetise apps through advertisements.

Users will not be able to “turn off” ads, unless an option to do so is built into the app at the development stage.

Microsoft Advertising has released details of a pilot Adidas app to showcase the kind of ad experiences that can be developed on Windows 8.

In the example, the ad is integrated into the Seattle Sounders FC app in Windows 8. By clicking on the ad, users are taken to a "rich brand landing experience" offering Adidas merchandise.

Microsoft Advertising said the co-development initiative is still at the early stages, but added that a few concepts could begin to run in the coming months.