Rich Media / Streaming

In its broadest sense, rich media refers to any digital media that exhibits a dynamic motion, be it through video, audio or the scrolling text of a news ticker. As digital media evolves and broadband take up increases, rich media is becoming more and more ubiquitous. From streaming TV shows and online music stores to mobile TV and video search engines. Unsurprisingly, marketers have been keen to employ rich media in advertising campaigns for the added 'wow' factor that, say, a streaming video can generate as opposed to a static banner ad. Rich media can be downloadable or may be embedded in a webpage. If downloadable, it can be viewed or used offline with media players.However, rich media also presents a number of accessibility challenges, particularly for users on dial-up Internet connections or disabled users, causing site slowdown and ultimately frustrating users. Rich media also presents certain security issues, as barriers need to be implemented to protect the copyright of the content, and the practice can be more expensive and complex to implement across cross-publisher media buys. Despite the pitfalls, using rich media can be justified by high impact and better returns than more static forms of advertising. As with other ad formats, the real key to rich media ads is what you do with it. Originality and creativity are the most effective way of getting a consumer's attention, and there are numerous firms ready to help you achieve this.