Massive Isn't: Microsoft Reportedly Shuttering In-Game Ad Unit

In 2006, Microsoft paid more than $200 million for Massive, a start-up that inserted advertising directly into video games. Now it’s shutting the whole thing down, says Mike Shields at MediaWeek. Shields says Massive had three problems: 1) the market for in-game ads never got nearly as big as predicted 2) Electronic Arts, which represented a big chunk of the revenue Massive did have, brought its business in-house and 3) Microsoft’s Xbox unit never bought into the deal in the first place.