Over the years, Rovio has expanded its mobile-first powerhouse across the digital, social and television space. Moving forward, the company will continue to create experiences that align with its overall marketing goals.

As part of its ongoing multichannel initiatives, Rovio has adopted a fan-first mentality. Recently, the company hired new team members from Millennial Media, Apple?s iAd, Rhythm New Media and InMobi to further solidify its position in the mobile, social and digital space.

In this Q&A, Michele Tobin, head of brand ad partnerships at Rovio expands on what sets the company apart, its fan-first outlook and the role advertising plays in the company?s day-to-day initiatives.

So Rovio?s Angry Birds is all set to be a mobile ad player?
We?re not just mobile. Rovio is one of the largest cross-platform media properties in the world. 

Our mobile properties alone reach more than 1.7 billion consumers. 

With the launch of Angry Birds Toons, we have a direct to consumer video channel that reaches well beyond this 1.7 billion consumer base into digital video and broadcast television channels.

Angry Birds started out as a mobile game and then franchised into other areas. What gives this property legs?
By capturing the hearts and minds of fans of all ages around the world, engagement with Angry Birds rapidly grew beyond the game itself and created a true cultural phenomenon that has developed into a global lifestyle brand.

As fan support for the Angry Birds brand has grown, we have been tremendously successful at matching it with an expanding universe of physical and digital touch points, ranging from merchandise, activity parks, and beverages to new game releases, books, and even our newly launched animation channel.

Rovio has created a new model of the media brand for the connected device era across mobile, online, tablets, social, cable, linear television and smart TVs.

Our success hinges on one simple truth ? Rovio is focused on fans first. 

Every decision the company makes, every game we launch, every product that we release ? these all start with a question ? ?Will this surprise and delight our fans?? 

What are the latest numbers for consumer engagement with the brand?
Our engagement numbers are higher than ever.

We saw a tremendous holiday season with more than 263MAU in December 2012.

With the release of Angry Birds Toons, we now have another way for fans to engage with the brand. Fans can view our animations within our games, but also via linear television and on demand through multiple distribution partners globally.

But that?s just our numbers.

The real power of this brand is our enthusiastic fan base. They have propelled the brand throughout the social media universe. 

With more than a billion video views; plus nearly 25 million Facebook fans and 570 thousand Twitter followers, we hear from our fans all the time.

So how will Rovio work with advertisers?
First of all, we seek to create brand synergies. We have a diverse fan base that can satisfy the audience goals of a wide variety of advertisers.

We offer solutions that range from deep integrations across multiple brand touch points to self-contained campaigns that focus on a specific objective.

The most compelling brand partnerships we?ve executed have included not only in-game elements, but have also leveraged the Angry Birds brand beyond the games and into other media.

For example, in China, McDonalds partnered with us on a fun, multi-channel campaign blending digital and physical elements. 

The campaign featured mobile, online, TV OOH ads and in-store retail components.

Additionally, Rovio?s ?Magic? product that rewarded fans who visited a participating McDonalds during the campaign with in-game value.

These types of brand partnerships create positive brand association and are aligned with our fans-first approach.

Will the consumers accept advertising related to Angry Birds?
We believe in providing tremendous entertainment value to our fans.

Rovio treats our games as a service, rather than a product, with continual updates including new levels and new content. Advertising helps support these efforts.

Our job is to integrate advertising in a way that meets our fans-focused approach, providing value to both the advertiser and the fan.

Our strong response metrics tell us we are doing a good job in providing relevant advertising content that resonates with our fans.

Monetizing traffic seems to be the name of the game here, right?
Creating the right brand partnerships that benefit the advertiser and our fans is the name of the game.

My in-house brand ad partnership team focuses on ensuring we have the right media and brand partners, with fun and creative, native ad experiences.  

What can other franchises learn from the Angry Birds? experience?
Every media company, publisher and developer is different. 

But if there?s one thing we know, it is that being 100 percent focused on our fans has been essential to Rovio?s success. 

It enabled us to create a two-way, online and offline relationship with the fans that helped build Rovio into one of the largest media companies in the world today. 

So our advice is ? pay attention and value your customers. 

Keep them in the center of all that you do, because in this fast moving digital era, customers will move on to someone that values them, in a mobile minute.

Final Take
Rimma Kats is associate editor on Mobile Marketer, New York