• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, December 4, 2015

Time Inc. readers may notice something a little different about photos appearing in the magazine publisher’s Web sites and apps, following a new deal with digital ad service GumGum for in-image advertising, reflecting the growing importance of visual media.

The exclusive partnership will give advertisers the ability to overlay contextually relevant ads on images appearing as part of editorial content in Time Inc. digital publications, including Sports Illustrated, Time, People, Fortune and Travel + Leisure, according to the publisher.

The overlay ads are available in a variety of sizes and formats, and offer additional interactive features including animation. Readers have the option of hiding the ads for an unobstructed view of the image if they wish.

Previously, GumGum cited research showing high viewability for image overlay ads, positioning itself as a potential solution to this growing area of concern in online advertising.

The company also noted that in-image advertising integrated into editorial content can help circumvent online ad blockers employed by many consumers.

GumGum currently claims partnerships with over 2,000 publishers; it has worked with advertising clients including Walt Disney, L’Oreal, Toyota and Samsung. In May, it raised $26 million in a round of funding that valued the company at around $200 million, and it recently opened an overseas office in London.

GumGum has been experimenting with video and also moved to integrate programmatic trading for in-image ads, while maintaining their contextual relevance.

While it claims to have pioneered in-image advertising, GumGum is longer alone in this arena. Back in September, Corbis and NetSeer launched a programmatic ad platform geared specifically for in-image advertising.