Bigger thinking from Microsoft's messenger

Hong Kong - Microsoft Advertising has doubled the ad size on its Windows Live Messenger platform, aiming to give its advertisers a better return on their online investments.

Already, Samsung, Twentieth Century Fox Film and Tiffany & Co Hong Kong have been testing the ad format, with Alex Yu, senior manager of product marketing & branding at Samsung Electronics saying the expanded format was five times as effective as the previous one.

"Our two week campaign brought us a good response which performed five times better than the regular half expandable banner," he said.  

Richard Dunmall, managing director of Microsoft Advertising Asia Pacific, said the bigger ad format gives advertisers a bigger and bolder opportunity to showcase products to consumers.

"The format is more akin to consumers' highly interactive messenger experience and has already boosted the return on investment for our advertisers."

Microsoft has now expanded advertising on Windows Live Messenger platform from 300 x 250 to 300 x 600.