Building Windows 8 Apps with JavaScript: Working with Ads
- Rules for Ads in Win8 Style Apps
- Working with the Windows 8 Ads SDK
- Working with Media-Based Ads
- Working with Text-Based Ads
From the book
From the book
From the book
So far in this chapter, we’ve talked about the nitty gritty of getting your app into the store, and if you’re charging for your app, that’s a great way to make a little—or even a lot of—money. But what if your app is free, or what if you want to squeeze even more revenue out of that paid app of yours? In Win8, you have options, starting with integrating ads into your apps.
Rules for Ads in Win8 Style Apps
Integrating advertising into apps is a common technique, and you’ll find it used widely in the iOS and Android ecosystems, today. Developers will also be free and even encouraged to use ads in their Win8 style apps, but Microsoft is keen on ensuring that ads are both used appropriately, and tastefully integrated with the platform. When you’re thinking about adding ads to your apps, keep a few things in mind[1]:
- Your app cannot display only ads to users, meaning that it must have a primary purpose apart from displaying a ton of ad links on a screen.
- Ad content must comply with Microsoft’s content requirements[2], meaning no adult or otherwise inappropriate ads are allowed.
- Ads cannot be displayed on tiles, the AppBar or in notifications.
- Ads cannot execute code other than code supplied by the ad provider, so if clicking on an ad should display a large popout banner, the code for the banner should be furnished directly by the ad provider.
If you choose to use ads in your app, these requirements will be verified during the manual certification process.
In most cases, you’ll want to rely on a third-party provider for you app’s advertising, as opposed to rolling your own solution. Your app is free to use any external provider—like AdMob, Millenial, or Smaato, for instance—but Microsoft provides their own Ads SDK that’s ready to drop into your apps today.
[1] This information is included in section 2 of Microsoft’s “Windows 8 app certification requirements,” guide at http://tinysells.com/221 (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/apps/hh694083.aspx)
[2] Microsoft’s content policies are described at http://tinysells.com/222 (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/apps/hh694083.aspx#acr_5_0)