When Kiip announced its $4 million round of funding last week, we were wondering what new could be added to the mobile advertising table if it wasn’t incentivized installs, classic mobile banner or interstitials ads or branded virtual goods.

But Kiip’s take is very novel indeed. The San Francisco based mobile advertising network gives gamers real-world rewards when they hit certain achievements in a game. Companies like group deals startup Homerun.com can offer free goods from local businesses while Sephora can give make-up samples to gamers when they level up. The company has rounded up other big brands like popchips, Sony Dash, Vitamin Water, 1-800-Flowers, Dr. Pepper, GNC, Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s.

It’s a nice way to capitalize on the psychological boost a gamer gets when they unlock a new item or level up.

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