WPP and its media buying arm GroupM today have officially been inducted into the Roblox Partner Program. The giant agency holding company is the first new member to join the program following the announcement of its expansion at Roblox Developers Conference last month. It's the second agency holding company to join the Roblox Partner Program, following Dentsu, which was one of the initial seven partners when the program kicked off last year.
"Some partnerships are built on what you hope to do together," said Roblox vp of global brand partnerships and advertising Stephanie Latham. "Our partnership is building off the existing success that WPP and GroupM are already having with dozens of their clients on our platform, and it will also help us at Roblox push the boundaries of what's possible in the immersive media space."
Elements of the Roblox-WPP partnership will include the joint development of a certification program intended to help marketers become Roblox experts, as well as the formation of an "advisory council" to help develop measurement standards for Roblox's three-dimensional in-game advertising inventory.
WPP and Roblox also plan to collaborate on a series of client sprint days connecting experienced Roblox community creators and developer studios with interested marketers.
"The joint council brings together the best of both worlds: Roblox's platform expertise paired with client leads from GroupM that have a clear understanding of client needs," said WPP chief creative officer Rob Reilly. "WPP and GroupM will consult with Roblox as they build out new measurement solutions on the platform, helping to inform vendor selection and product roadmap based on what our clients want."
WPP's official partnership with Roblox represents a continuation of the company's established interest in the metaverse -- and efforts to educate marketers about the opportunities it represents. In 2022, WPP partnered with Epic Games to teach its staff how to better take advantage of the Unreal Engine 3D creation platform. And in 2020, WPP became an early investor in the in-game advertising network Anzu.
The explicit involvement of GroupM in the WPP-Roblox partnership also signals WPP's interest in Roblox's programmatic advertising inventory. After signing an agreement with PubMatic earlier this year, Roblox has gradually expanded its programmatic business, and some observers anticipate that demand-side platforms will start offering Roblox inventory as early as later this year.
"I think Roblox's commitment to building a robust advertising ecosystem, including the news of its programmatic offerings, signals their team's dedication to creating a sustainable environment for brands to grow and explore new opportunities," Reilly said.
Although gaming is rapidly becoming one of the most popular forms of entertainment, brands' spending in programmatic in-game advertising has not yet scaled up to match the level of users' activity and engagement inside video games.
Historically, brands have seen more value in custom game integrations or branded worlds, which often take place inside metaverse platforms such as Roblox and Fortnite. As major media buyers such as GroupM turn their attention to the programmatic advertising side of Roblox, their involvement could help usher more marketers toward intrinsic in-game advertising, both inside Roblox and beyond.
"It's a powerful statement that these top agencies, the authorities of media spend, recognize the value of a metaverse plan for brands within the overall media strategy mix," said Ricardo Briceno, chief brand officer of the Roblox studio Gamefam. "By virtue of their influence, they will shine even more light on the reach that Roblox can grant their clients with a key Gen Z and Alpha audience; this will result in further brands entering the space."