This just in: Advertising helps sell games. Specifically, advertising in GameStop on the retail chain's in-store channel, GameStop TV, resulted in a sales bump of 19 to 36 percent on featured titles, according to a Nielsen Media Research study covered by Nielsen's own Adweek magazine.

　　According to Adweek, GameStop TV's two-hour-long programming loop proved impactful in the recent study. While the 19-to-36 percent bump was enjoyed by titles that advertised on the channel, games that were merely mentioned also received a sales boost averaging 20 percent. On top of that, customers spent twice as much time on average in stores playing games featured on the ads.

　　The article gave kudos for the sales to Channel M, the production company behind GameStop TV. Channel M COO told Adweek that one key to the promotion's success was that gamers had difficulty telling where the advertising stopped and the actual game coverage began.

　　"It's better if [consumers] are watching something and don't know it's paid for," Hebel told the magazine. "We can have the hosts of the program talking about a game so that it doesn't look like an ad, but it could be part of the deal."

　　That sentiment was echoed by then-GameStop vice president of marketing Tom De Napoli. "Our audience has a built-in bulls*** meter," he told Adweek. "When they're being advertised to, they know it. Advertising has to feel natural."

　　This week, GameSpot has confirmed with GameStop that De Napoli is no longer employed by the retailer, although the retailer's representative did not elaborate on the timing of or reason for his departure. As of press time, Nielsen had not responded to GameSpot's request for comment and further details on the study.