• by Ben Frederick  @mp_benfred, January 8, 2016

LAS VEGAS - At a session on the future of digital political engagement at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, social game developer Zynga announced that it would bring ad units to political advertisers through the Rubicon Project ad marketplace.

Zynga recently made its total inventory available for purchase programmatically through Rubicon’s Guaranteed Orders platform. The political ads will be available through the same platform.

Ads will appear as mini-games that parrot the feeling and texture of the game in which they are served.

“This election cycle, mobile will be a critically important channel for political campaigns looking for new ways to capture and hold voters' attention," stated Dr. Amy Gershkoff, chief data officer of Zynga and former head of media planning for Obama for America.

While most of the political ad battle will take place on TV this season, mobile still has a niche role to play, though that role could expand in future cycles.

Some experts estimate we’ll see $4.4 billion in TV ads in the coming year, but add that TV advertising isn’t nearly as effective as it has been in the past. It is losing its place as the top dog for political ads.

The increase in political spending doesn’t necessarily reflect grassroots support, making political ads less effective than they used to be, since fewer people care. In previous elections, the candidates that raised the most money tended to have a lot more clout.

Now,however, candidates with Super PACs can raise a lot of money from a few investors, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they have a widespread or heavily invested following. Money only gives their messages breadth, not depth.