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As the debate over the future of the console wages on, the gaming community continues to look for the latest trends that will give one of the leading consoles the edge to push ahead of the pack.

However, some gaming enthusiasts have taken a step back to view the entire gaming landscape and the ways that distribution plays into the future of the industry. As consumers increase their interest in, and access to, digital entertainment content, the gaming industry must reevaluate the way it distributes content – especially in emerging markets slow to enforce international conventions on content ownership.

At this year’s Casual Connect Conference in Seattle, Alex St. John, CEO of WildTangent, predicted the death of console gaming by 2020. He surmised that as the industry shifts its focus from quality graphics to production value it will be less inclined to invest in the development of next-gen gaming consoles. When coupled with rapidly increasing digital content distribution through online and mobile devices, the decrease in console production will cut into the profits and demand for retail console and PC games. With the increased proliferation of affordable, immediate digital content, St. John predicted that the PC and browser will emerge as the dominate “console” within the gaming industry.

Last year, I contributed an article to Jon Peddie’s Tech Watch newsletter that introduced my thoughts about wireless digital content distribution and its future impact on the gaming industry. My comments then and my thoughts now continue to focus on how the inevitable drive to digitize content along with the growing importance of emerging markets and the promise of cross platform design will ultimately drive the industry forward. As the volume and types of available digital content multiplies, consumer buying habits will relate more to how they are able to access this content via new distribution outlets like a PC browser, mobile phone or potentially new yet to be launched consumer electronic devices enabled with wireless connectivity, than to the particular content itself.

Digital Distribution Effects

Over the last few years, the entertainment industry has increased the ways it distributes its digital content and that increased focus has affected every facet of entertainment from videos to books to music to games. In May for example, Apple announced that they will be offering full movie downloads on iTunes the same day they are released on DVD in retail stores, which expands the reach to consumers for entertainment companies beyond traditional storefronts. As a result of this success, game console companies are also looking to establish and expand their digital content distribution into the digital living room worldwide, as consumers require on demand content at the touch of their fingers and from the comfort of their living room sofas. At E3 2008, Microsoft announced a distribution deal with Netflix to stream more than 10,000 movies and TV shows to Xbox Live subscribers. More deals like this are sure to follow.

Within the gaming industry, digital distribution has been a hotly debated topic and on the forefront for the top console and PC game companies. Earlier this year, NPD analyst Anita Frazier stated that the $60 million drop in PC software retail revenue from 2006 to 2007 reflects the industry’s movement towards digital distribution as opposed to more traditional forms of distribution. By redefining what “console” means, and offering new mobile devices to view the latest content, the increased availability of digital content will cause console companies to invest in new wireless options and technologies as well as explore new business models. A precursor of the future to come in terms of business models is Amazon’s 3G-powered Kindle e-book reader. By bundling wireless airtime with the price of content, Amazon has created a simple seamless transparent consumer experience – a model we’re sure to see more of in the future.

Emerging Markets and Piracy

Content providers of all types (not just games) will also be able to better control illegal sales and piracy via digital distribution. Global piracy costs game publishers billions of dollars a year, with Nintendo estimating that it alone lost about $975 million worldwide to piracy in 2007. This trend is especially strong in developing South American, Central American and Asian markets where courts are slow, or even unwilling to enforce international conventions on content ownership. By distributing branded digital content on secure 3G, and eventually 4G networks, companies can protect their content while delivering it to a new market hungry for it. For consoles to succeed in these markets they’re likely to rely more upon digital distribution than disk-based distribution. This is a trend that markets like North America and Europe will also continue to embrace as publishers navigate the very sensitive balance between their existing physical retail relationships and their growing desire to offer more digital content direct to consumers – a dynamic that is less well established in emerging markets. In many cases these emerging market consumers’ first exposure to games will be via their mobile phones seeing as the majority does not own a console or even a PC in their homes. Goldman Sachs estimates that by the end of the next decade, 800 million people will move into the middle class in Brazil, Russia, India and China – more than the populations of the United States, Western Europe and Japan combined. With a potentially large untapped consumer base, the numerous and difficult political, regulatory and economic hurdles in these regions are sure to be overcome. Furthermore, as the on-device experience continues to improve for emerging markets of the world, wireless digital distribution will be the primary method of content distribution on platforms of all types, including consoles.

via Mike Yuen @ edge

It looks like Nvidia is moving to enhance its product portfolio: after introduction of hardware-supporting businesses such as CUDA and cool 3D interface for Windows Mobile, it looks like the company is getting ready to become a competitor of Steam, D2D, Netflix, Xbox Marketplace and others...

read more | digg story

"One day, games will depart the physical world, existing only as data on a storage device, downloaded like everything else. It's inevitable. And with the ever-growing popularity of digital distribution services like Valve's Steam, Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade, and Sony's PlayStation Network, that future seems to be near. Freed from the constraints of shelf space and the enormous cost of physical distribution, game developers will have a chance to explore ideas that never could've turned a profit at $60 on a Best Buy shelf. We've already seen it happen with last year's (partially) Steam-distributed hit Portal and the currently in-vogue Xbox Live Arcade puzzler Braid.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Downloadable content (DLC) is a form of digital media distributed through the internet.

The phrase is used to refer specifically to content created for computer and video games that is released separately from the main video game release. Downloadable content, however, has sometimes been used to refer to any type of digital entertainment media distributed online. ^[1]

Videogame distributer Game Outlet Europe has formed its own publishing company, Nordic Games Publishing.

The Swedish outfit, which has a 25 strong workforce, plans to launch a range of licensed titles and new IP for PlayStation 2, Wii, DS and PC, initially focusing on the budget and mid-priced markets.

"This is an exciting time for the group, and with the huge expansion of the market we feel it is the right time to enter the publishing business,” said Pelle Lundborg, publishing director at Nordic Games (pictured).

Nordic Games currently has five projects in development and will distribute its titles across Europe through a mixture of traditional retail, distributors and its Game Outlet Pallet network of over 2,000 retailers.

"Our unique distribution method means that platforms like the Sony PlayStation 2 has at least another three years left in its lifecycle, and we are in a position to benefit from this,” added Lundborg.

via Edge

it has been announced that Capcom’s Bionic Commando: Rearmed will not be distributed to PC gamers via Valve’s service Steam...

read more | digg story

Vector-owned Corel confirms it is in discussions with third party

Corel Corporation, an Ottawa, Canada-headquartered developer of graphics, productivity and digital media software, has confirmed that it is 'in discussions with a third party regarding a potential sale of Corel'. Vector Capital Partners owns 69 per cent of the company.
No agreement has been reached, the statement added.

Vector, which has owned Corel since 2003, has abandoned its plan to take the company private. The San Francisco-based firm took Corel public in 2006. It had planned to pay shareholders $11 a share and privatise it again.

NASDAQ-listed Corel is a developer of graphics, productivity and digital media software with more than 100 million users worldwide.

In a separate statement, it was announced that Vector has approached Aladdin Knowledge Systems to buy the information security business specialising in authentication, software DRM and content security.

via AltAssets

Toronto, ON (PALLUXO!) August 22, 2008 - TransGaming Inc. (TSX VENTURE: TNG), a leading developer of portability technologies for the electronic entertainment industry and Sony DADC are pleased to announce that TransGaming will utilize Sony DADC’s SecuROM(TM) digital rights management (DRM) solution for all video game titles enabled through TransGaming’s Cider portability engine for Mac games. The SecuROM(TM) system will provide game publishers and developers with the best in class portability and DRM solutions as they work with TransGaming to deploy their titles on the Mac platform through TransGaming’s digital distribution portal, www.gametreeonline.com.

TransGaming is a leader in video game portability technology, providing the industry with both Mac and Linux portability solutions through its Cider(TM) and Cedega(TM) products. TransGaming’s Cider Portability Engine enabled more game titles for Mac in 2007 than all other Mac game developers and publishers combined. By utilizing Sony DADC’s SecuROM(TM) digital rights management solution, TransGaming will have a high level of security against piracy and unauthorized copying for Cider enabled game titles.

“With the launch of our consumer-facing Mac games portal, GameTree Online (www.gametreeonline.com), we are pleased to ensure the protection of Ciderized games through with Sony DADC’s SecuROM(TM)”, commented Vikas Gupta, President and CEO of TransGaming. “Our ability to offer Sony DADC’s security solution is imparting substantial comfort to our publishers and developers interested in the Mac gaming market and demonstrates a clear advantage as to why Cider is the leading solution for Mac games enablement.”

TransGaming’s Cider Portability Engine acts as a “wrapper” around the games Windows-PC software, enabling it to run seamlessly on Intel-based Macs. Protecting the intellectual rights of the game for publishers and developers has quickly become an even greater priority as more and more games are being distributed digitally to consumers. Publishers and developers are looking for leading edge rights management solutions as part of their entry into new consumer platforms such as Mac.

TransGaming will bring a broad portfolio of games to the Mac community, which will also benefit from the SecuROM(TM) digital rights management solution through the portability process, thus providing a refined and very effective complete solution. By utilizing Sony DADC’s SecuROM(TM), TransGaming is able to offer Mac enablement and distribution technologies in one convenient location for all game publishers and developers.

“Sony DADC is the first digital rights management provider to apply product activation security in cooperation with TransGaming’s portability technology for the Mac”, explained Stefan Tschapeck, SecuROM(TM) Product Manager at Sony DADC. “TransGaming’s Cider portability technology provides the use of our SecuROM Product Activation for all Ciderized Mac games, whether sold online via digital download or through traditional retail channels.”

With SecuROM(TM) Product Activation, Sony DADC offers games and software publishers, plus online distributors, the possibility to apply just one single DRM solution to their content, regardless whether it is distributed via the physical or digital sales channel (e.g. Internet). SecuROM(TM) Product Activation enables content owners to apply different business models, such as “Try & Buy” or “Subscription” for publishers and online distributors of games and/or software. As a result publishers and online distributors can benefit from increasing customer loyalty and additional revenues. Sony DADC’s SecuROM(TM) digital rights management solution is already used by 80% of the top Windows-PC game publishers worldwide and is now positioned to also become the leader of product activation solutions for the Mac.

About TransGaming, Inc.

TransGaming Inc. (TSX VENTURE: TNG), is a leader in the development of unique software portability products that facilitate the deployment of games across multiple platforms. TransGaming’s portability technologies significantly reduce the time-to-market for and costs associated with multi-platform game releases. TransGaming works with many of the industry’s leading developers and publishers to enable their games on the Mac and Linux operating systems, and currently markets its products under four brand names: Cider (Mac Gaming), Cedega (Linux Gaming), SwiftShader (Graphics Rendering) and GameTreeOnline.com (Digital Retail). TransGaming is headquartered in Toronto, Canada and maintains a research and development center in Ottawa, Canada. To learn more about TransGaming’s products visit www.transgaming.com.

About Sony DADC

Sony DADC is a leading disc and digital solution provider for the entertainment, education and information industries, offering world-class optical media replication services, digital and physical supply chain solutions and software services. Sony DADC has more than 20 facilities worldwide.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept the responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

via palluxo

On the heels of a record-setting second quarter, retailer GameStop says that its higher full-year guidance factors in $50 price cuts for both Xbox 360 and PS3 in the holiday season.

The retailer is unconcerned, says COO Dan DeMatteo, about Sony's digital distribution push -- nor the just-announced 160 GB PS3 designed in part to accommodate and encourage more downloadable games.

In a post-results analyst call attended by Gamasutra, DeMatteo called the revenue stream for digital distribution "pretty insignificant" and suggested that the new, larger-capacity PS3 is largely a move on Sony's part to encourage the console's use as a "media hub."

The assertion lines up with comments made by Sony president and CEO Jack Tretton, who at the time of the announcement also pegged PS3 exclusives on the PlayStation network as a motivating factor in the expanded storage space.

"We don't expect full distribution of new games to be a threat due to game size," DeMatteo says, also citing long download times as a barrier for the format.

As for the Wii, GameStop says it's still seeing supply constraints in the face of strong demand, even though sales are gentling in the summer. "Three months ago, whatever we got into our stores would sell in two days," DeMatteo says.

"Now it's three or four days, but it's still extremely strong for a system that's been out... a year and a half. Demand is really very strong... it's going to continue, and there will still be shortages throughout the year."

However, GameStop anticipates that Wii Fit will be even harder to come by than the Wii itself over the holidays. "It's in very short supply," DeMatteo says. via GamaSutra

Pre-Order FlatOut Ultimate Carnage On Steam And Receive a Free Copy Of the Original Flat Out Immediately.Pre-order FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage® on Steam between August 19 and August 25.

read more | digg story

Canadians offered wireless multimedia products and content under one roof. Bell Mobility's superior wireless products and digital content distribution capabilities will soon beoffered across the country in HMV the nation's leading retail entertainmentdestination...

read more | digg story

In its continued attempt to take over the gaming world (read: universe), EA seems to be giving 'come hither' eyes to its recent Left 4 Dead pal, Valve. Worst news ever, or...really not so bad?

read more | digg story

How much is PC gaming worth? Just what size industry are you supporting when you buy a new game? A pretty considerable one, with the PC Gaming Alliance stating that PC gaming raked in over $10.7 billion in 2007. That's a big chunk of change. More interesting than the large amount of money poured into PC gaming, though, is where specifically that money is coming from. Apparently less than a third of that actually came from people buy games off the shelves – but nearly half of it came from online gaming.

The subscription fee model is clearly working well for companies that employ it, with $4.8 billion of that 2007 figure being attributed to it. Another $2 billion was generated through digital distribution, such as Steam.

No matter which way you look at it, the sign is clear – PC gamers want to spend their money online more often than not, and it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest to hear that 2008 was the year in which digital distribution overcame retail.
via TechSpot

The real-time strategy title is available for immediate download in conjunction with its retail release.
Official Press Release | Aug. 19, 2008

Direct2Drive, IGN Entertainment's digital retail store, today announced that Shattered Suns is now available for digital download in conjunction with its retail release. Starting today, users can go directly to Direct2Drive and immediately download Shattered Suns, the latest title from Clear Crown Studios.

Shattered Suns is a real-time strategy title that allows gamers to command a fleet of custom-designed space ships in exciting 3-dimensional battles amid the ever-changing battlefield of orbiting planets and moons. Shattered Suns is unlike any real-time strategy game loaded with revolutionary new features and strategic depth.

"We are very excited to offer Shattered Suns available for digital distribution on the day that the game releases into retail," said Chas. Cooper, Founder of Clear Crown Studios. "By providing gamers the ability to purchase through Direct2Drive, we are working with a trusted leader in the industry giving our fans the best experience possible in downloading our games."

"Direct2Drive is dedicated to working closely with independent developers and publishers like Clear Crown Studios to provide our customers with the broadest selection of great PC games on the exact day they are released at retail," said Sutton Trout, VP of digital content for IGN Entertainment. "We are happy to offer Shattered Suns in our ever-expanding library of premier titles."

Since the site's launch in October 2004, more than one million games have been downloaded on Direct2Drive, and the site enables gamers to conveniently purchase and download the latest premium games and expansion packs from the world's top publishers.

Consumers can download Shattered Suns today at http://www.direct2drive.com. Shattered Suns is rated E10+ by ESRB with an MSRP of $39.99 (USD).

About Direct2Drive

Direct2Drive (D2D) is IGN Entertainment's digital download store (http://www.direct2drive.com). Launched in October 2004, D2D allows consumers to conveniently purchase and download the latest premium PC games, comics and anime titles directly from the Web to their desktops. D2D's AAA roster of leading game publishers includes Atari, Activision, Blizzard Entertainment, Electronic Arts, NCsoft, Rockstar Games, SEGA, Sony Online Entertainment, THQ, 2K Games, Ubisoft and Vivendi Universal Games.

About IGN Entertainment

IGN Entertainment, a unit of Fox Interactive Media, Inc., is a leading Internet media and services provider focused on the videogame and entertainment enthusiast markets. Collectively, IGN's properties reached more than 30 million unique users worldwide in the month of June 2008, according to Internet audience measurement firm comScore Media Metrix. IGN's network of videogame-related properties (IGN.com, GameSpy, FilePlanet, TeamXbox, Direct2Drive and others), is the Web's number one videogame information destination and attracts one of the largest concentrated audiences of young males on the Internet. IGN also owns and operates the popular movie-related website, Rotten Tomatoes and one of the leading male lifestyle Websites, AskMen.com. In addition, IGN provides technology for online game play in videogames. IGN is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, with offices throughout the U.S. and in Montreal.

About Clear Crown Studios

Based in Burlingame, California, Clear Crown Studios develops and publishes computer games. For more information, visit http://www.clearcrownstudios.com.
via GameSpy

US retail e-commerce sales 2Q08, adjusted for seasonal variation but not for price changes, was an estimated $34.6 billion, an increase of 2.9 percent (+/- 1.0 percent) from the first quarter, the Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced (via Retailer Daily).

Total retail sales for the second quarter were estimated at $1,034.8 billion, an increase of 0.9 percent (+/- 0.3 percent) from the first quarter of 2008.

E-commerce sales in the second quarter of 2008 accounted for 3.3 percent of total sales:

The second quarter 2008 e-commerce estimate increased 9.5 percent (+/- 1.2 percent) from the second quarter of 2007, while total retail sales increased 2.5 percent (+/- 0.5 percent) in the same period.

On a not-adjusted basis:

• The estimate of US retail e-commerce sales for the second quarter of 2008 totaled $32.5 billion, an increase of 0.5 percent (+/- 1.0 percent) from the first quarter of 2008.
• The second quarter 2008 e-commerce estimate increased 8.9 percent (+/- 1.2 percent) from the second quarter of 2007 while total retail sales increased 2.3 (+/- 0.5 percent) in the same period.
• E-commerce sales in the second quarter of 2008 accounted for 3.1 percent of total sales.

Security and storage giant Symantec has agreed to buy specialist Australian-based anti-spyware firm PC Tools. Terms of the deal were undisclosed in Monday's announcement.

Subject to regulatory approvals, privately-held PC Tools will join Symantec's consumer security division. Symantec already has PC utilities and anti-sypware products in its extensive portfolio. The deal is more about expanding into an emerging regional market, brand and channel strategy rather than pure technology.

PC Tools will maintain separate operations within Symantec’s consumer business unit, with PC Tools chief exec Simon Clausen heading up the operation. He will be reporting to Janice Chaffin, Symantec's group president of consumer products. The PC Tools brand and channel structure will be retained.

Posted on: Monday, 18 August 2008, 00:00 CDT

* iTUNES Store

ITunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It is now the No. 1 music vendor in the United States. As of June 2008, the store has sold five billion songs, and has six million songs accounting for more than 70 per cent of worldwide online digital music sales.

* GoMusic

GoMusic is a Russian music download site. It offers a variety of music, including special collections, and audiobooks in Russian and English. Songs are priced per song, with prices averaging 15 cents (50 sen). Audiobooks, on the other hand, range between US$2.95 and US$5. The site has 2,650,000 songs.

* Napster

Napster Inc is an online music service offering a variety of purchase and subscription models. The company's name and logo derive from the former Napster peer-to-peer file trading service, which was shut down after a series of legal actions taken by the RIAA. The brand name was later purchased by Roxio, to capitalise on the popularity of the former service. The site has six million songs.

* eMusic

EMusic is an online music store that operates by subscription. It is headquartered in New York City and owned by Dimensional Associates, LLC. eMusic differs from well-known subscription music services such as Napster and Rhapsody as the files are in MP3 format, making them compatible with all digital music players, and free from digital rights management software restrictions such as expiration dates, or copying or CD burning limitations. The site has two million songs.

* Rhapsody

Rhapsody is an online music service run by RealNetworks. Launched in December 2001, Rhapsody was the first to offer streaming on- demand access to its library of digital music. Downloaded files come with restrictions on their use, enforced by Helix, RealNetworks' version of digital rights management. The site has five million songs.

* Gua Muzik

On April 14 this year, gua.com.my launched its GUAMuzik online shop. The paid music portal can be reached at http:// www.guamuzik.com.my. It offers various genres of music from local and international artists. Besides that, it also offers songs from Fly FM, Hot FM and Muzik Muzik which can be downloaded. Each song costs RM3.

* Jiwang.org

Jiwang.org is a non-profit organisation. It is powered by a group of people connected to the Internet offering Malaysian and Indonesian songs.

* MP3.com

This is a well-organised MP3 store which offers accessories and songs in genres such as rock, hip-hop, R&B, and jazz. It even includes spoken words and audio book downloads. It also offers visitors the music services, and software.

* Yahoo! Music Unlimited

Yahoo! Music Unlimited is an on-demand online music service launched on May 11, 2005 and provided by Yahoo! Music. Users just need to pay a subscription fee to access a library of over two million songs which could be either streamed or downloaded as DRM WMA files and played from a computer in near CD quality sound.

* PayPlay.FM

PayPlay.FM currently offers over 1,970,000 songs of independent music in MP3 and WMA DRM formats. The store has been added to the Windows Media Online Store. The music in the store is sold at 192 kilobit-per-second (VBR) WMA and MP3 files.

(c) 2008 New Straits Times. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.

Source: New Straits Times via redOrbit

GMG Entertainment Extends Partnership With AdventureQuest, Gala-Net, and Stardoll and Announces Partnership With Meez by Launching Exclusive Digital Entertainment Cards in Stores Nationwide
Brand New Prepaid Stardoll Card to Award Free Virtual Gift to Purchaser

Last update: 3:12 p.m. EDT Aug. 18, 2008
LOS ANGELES, Aug 18, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- GMG Entertainment, the leading publisher of digital currency cards for the digital gaming and online entertainment industries, has expanded its partnerships with digital entertainment partners through a launch of an exclusive line of prepaid currency cards at Best Buy. GMG partners launching exclusive versions include: AdventureQuest ( http://www.Battleon.com), Gala-Net ( http://www.gPotato.com), Meez ( http://www.Meez.com), and Stardoll ( http://www.Stardoll.com). GMG's branded cards provide consumers with the virtual currency inside of "free to play" environments needed to "pay" for virtual goods, micro transactions, game tokens, and more. The announcement was made today by Rob Goldberg, Founder and CEO of GMG Entertainment.
"We are very pleased to directly connect consumers with the exclusive offers and virtual currency that can greatly enhance their experiences online. Our digital partners represent some of the most innovative leaders in their respective categories, and we are excited to be making the move to extend and in the case of Meez, to launch, their brands nationwide through top tier retailers," said Goldberg.
"Stardoll is very excited to build on our partnership with GMG Entertainment," said Stardoll Executive Vice President and General Manager, Matt Palmer. "Since last October when GMG first began to help us introduce Stardoll prepaid cards to brick and mortar stores across the country, we have been able to reach and invite millions of additional fashion enthusiasts to enjoy our virtual community. We are happy to have been among the first virtual worlds to lead the way in the prepaid card space."
"Meez is very excited to announce our partnership with GMG Entertainment by introducing our prepaid cards into Best Buy stores across the country," said Meez CEO, Sean Ryan. "This is a chance to not only offer our established user base an important new way to purchase virtual currency, but we look forward to inviting millions of new digital entertainment enthusiasts into the Meez community."
"We are excited to open up a broad, new distribution channel with Best Buy, through our partnership with GMG Entertainment," said AdventureQuest Business Development Manager, Daniel Vasile. "It's an opportunity for our legions of users to enhance their gaming experience on our site, as well as a chance to introduce an entirely new audience to our games."
From massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) to casual games and social networking sites, GMG's content partners appeal to a wide-range of consumers. For example, an AdventureQuest prepaid card may be used to enhance gameplay or upgrade a premium user with access to the site's special features. One of the most popular cards comes from Stardoll, the world's largest online entertainment destination devoted to girls interested in fame, fashion and friends and a virtual community where nearly 20 million members come to engage with A-list brands and partners, including: Avril Lavigne, DKNY, Heidi Klum, Hilary Duff, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Sephora and Vivienne Tam. GMG's engagement with Stardoll extends to include a brand new $15 prepaid gift card that will award the purchaser with the ability to select from a variety of virtual gifts when they redeem the card on the Stardoll Web site. Additional partners include Gala-Net, which will offer an exclusive collector's edition card. Finally, GMG will offer an exclusive Meez prepaid digital entertainment card that includes a bonus free limited edition item.
About GMG Entertainment
As a leading publisher of digital currency cards for the digital gaming and online entertainment industries, GMG connects content partners with the strongest performing retailers worldwide. Founded by CEO Rob Goldberg in 2002, GMG Entertainment creates and implements entertainment-based ideas for consumers and digital brands through traditional retail and consumer marketing. With partners on sale or launching at nearly 30,000 point-of-sale activated destinations including Best Buy, Target, Staples and Wal-Mart, GMG works directly with leading digital content creators and globally renowned retailers to develop the nation's most powerful digital-physical partnerships.
About Artix Entertainment LLC (AdventureQuest)
Artix Entertainment LLC, headquartered in Land O' Lakes, Florida, is a family-owned game development and publishing business that specializes in creating online, browser-based, computer role-playing games written for Macromedia Flash. Artix has developed a small range of games with storylines that are based in the fantasy and adventure genre. Content within the games is updated on a weekly basis, creating a compelling application, which keeps users coming back to the sites for new content and story lines. All of Artix's games have anime-style graphics and a simple user interface.
About Gala-Net, Inc.
Founded in 2004, Gala-Net, Inc. is a subsidiary of the global online community company Gala, Inc. Together with its European subsidiary, Gala Networks Europe, Gala-Net is a leader in the burgeoning free-to-play online games market. Headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Gala-Net's diverse service portfolio includes Flyff, Rappelz, Corum Online, Shot Online, Upshift StrikeRacer, Luna Online, and Tales Runner. Through the games portal gPotato ( http://www.gpotato.com), gamers can play any of Gala-Net's games for free, as well as buy in-game currency and virtual items for any of its games.
About Meez, Inc.
Meez ( http://www.meez.com) is a leading social entertainment community of more than 7 million teens and college-aged youth that create custom 3D avatars, play casual games, connect with others in virtual worlds and participate in a virtual economy. Meez has developed successful, metrics- driven branding programs for top advertisers such as Nike, Sony, Snapple and Cover Girl. Meez is currently distributed on leading social media sites and services, including AIM, Facebook, Friendster, and Photobucket. Based in San Francisco, CA, and developed by Donnerwood Media, Meez is backed by Battery Ventures, Transcosmos Partners, Allen & Co. and individual investors.
About Stardoll
Stardoll ( http://www.stardoll.com), a premier virtual fashion entertainment destination on the web, empowers users to express their creativity within a unique "social play" environment that blends childlike play with social networking to deliver a playful, fun-filled approach to fashion, celebrity and dress-up. Drawing a core worldwide audience of girls aged 9-17, the site enables kids to build stunning likenesses of themselves while offering them an extensive collection of thousands of custom-designed garments and accessories. The site is updated weekly with new dolls as well as hand-crafted fashions and accessories to fulfill the overwhelming demand and interests of the site's nearly 8 million unique monthly visitors. About 25,000 new fans join daily, adding to the existing fan-base of more than 19.6 million registered users in over 200 countries. Stardoll has designed and executed a number of successful ad integration campaigns and programs with blue chip advertisers including: Disney, Kohl's, Fox Walden, Proctor & Gamble and T-Mobile. The company is based in Stockholm, Sweden with an office in Los Angeles, California. Stardoll is backed by two of the world's top venture capital firms: Sequoia Capital, whose track record includes Yahoo, Google and YouTube among many others; and, Index Ventures, whose track record includes Skype among many others.
via MarketWatch

Good news for all those who've lamented the unavailability of high quality, unrestricted digital content from D.C.'s most storied independent record label. Dischord Records' catalog has been available via the iTunes store and some other online sources for a few years now, but those recordings were most often only available at relatively low 128 kbps quality, and contained all the usual DRM restrictions. Not only that, in many of those stores a Dischord track cost the same as the new single by Britney Spears, when the label has historically been all about pricing things more reasonably than major labels.

But the label just announced via their newsletter Thursday that their newly revamped website now doubles as a fully functioning online digital music store as well. And they're offering much higher quality MP3s than can be found at other sources (320 kbps), plus all tracks are DRM free.

Pricing is only $7 for almost all full albums, while single tracks can be purchased via a credits system that works out to just shy of 67 cents per song. As many labels are now doing, 12" vinyl purchased through the website will automatically allow a free digital download of the record as well. The new site also includes a media player with selected streaming content, and the label is soliciting submissions of good quality audio and video material of Dischord bands to include on the player.

Back to the pricing, some might ask, why no straightforward single-track purchasing? The label points out that significant portions of the tiny sums put up for single track sales end up going to pay credit card fees; rather than giving money away to credit card companies, better that a larger percentage goes to the artist and the label, hence the encouragement to buy in bulk. Plus, it provides incentive for people to give a shot to tracks from bands they might not have looked into otherwise.

Dischord's foray into the world of zeroes and ones was news enough that Wired picked up the story on Friday. Predictably, it was full of the usual semi-accurate or over-emphasized mass media shorthands that often turn up in articles about Dischord (calling it a "hardcore" label when the last new hardcore record they released was probably over 20 years ago, the tiresome link between the label and the Straight Edge movement, the treatment of Fugazi and Dischord as synonymous entities), but it's always nice to see locals recognized in national media. Moreover, the Wired piece demonstrates that the label has managed to come up with an innovative model for digital distribution that might serve other small labels well. Not mentioned in the article is the release strategy for the next Edie Sedgwick record, which Dischord is putting out in the fall, and which will only be released on vinyl and MP3, with an option for CD enthusiasts to download and self-print artwork for CDs they burn themselves from the MP3 downloads. The label may be just a couple years shy of entering its fourth decade, but they appear to be committed to keeping up and coexiting with the technology many claim will eventually leave traditional record labels obsolete.

Photo: Ian Buckwalter

via: dcist

TransGaming's digital distribution portal, GameTree Online (www.gametreeonline.com), will make the title available immediately to the Mac community for purchase via direct download.

Jade Empire Special Edition is set in an ancient and mysterious world where players can choose to act as a noble hero or treacherous villain by following the path of the 'Open Palm' or the 'Closed Fist'. Players will face powerful human and supernatural foes, learn magical martial arts and weapons styles, and discover the darkest secrets of the world. Jade Empire Special Edition engages users with its rich story line and optimizes the gaming experience with graphical upgrades, enhanced resolution and exclusive content. Jade Empire has won numerous awards including Game of the Year, RPG of the Year, Best Story, Best Sound and Best Original Soundtrack (http://jade.bioware.com/awards_reviews/).

Jade Empire Special Edition for Mac was made possible using TransGaming's Cider Portability Engine, that acts as a "wrapper" around the game software, enabling it to run seamlessly on Intel-based Macs. The partnership extends TransGaming's publishing and developer network and offers both parties a revenue-sharing model related to Mac game sales.

"The addition of Jade Empire Special Edition to GameTree Online illustrates the commitment TransGaming and leading developers like BioWare have in serving the Mac gaming community with high quality games," commented Vikas Gupta, CEO & President of TransGaming. "Our Cider technology allows us to rapidly enable and deploy high quality games and Jade Empire Special Edition is another example of the exceptional calibre of games we are pleased to be delivering to the ever growing Mac gaming community."

Jade Empire Special Edition is rated "M" for Mature. To download and play the Mac version today, visit http://www.gametreeonline.com/bioware/jade.

About TransGaming, Inc.

TransGaming Inc. (TSX VENTURE: TNG) is a leader in the development of unique software portability products that facilitate the deployment of games across multiple platforms. TransGaming's portability technologies significantly reduce the time-to-market for and costs associated with multi-platform game releases. TransGaming works with many of the industry's leading developers and publishers to enable their games on the Mac and Linux operating systems, and currently markets its products under four brand names: Cider (Mac Gaming), Cedega (Linux Gaming), SwiftShader (Graphics Rendering) and GameTreeOnline.com (Digital Retail). TransGaming is headquartered in Toronto, Canada and maintains a research and development center in Ottawa, Canada. To learn more about TransGaming's products visit www.transgaming.com.

About BioWare

BioWare develops computer, console, handheld and online video games focused on rich stories and memorable characters. Since 1995, BioWare has created some of the world's best-selling titles including the award-winning Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights series, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Original BioWare-created IPs include Jade Empire and the 2007 Game of the Year, Mass Effect. With studios in Edmonton, Canada, and Austin, Texas, BioWare is hard at work on the epic fantasy RPG, Dragon Age: Origins and Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood for the Nintendo DS, as well as several unannounced projects including a massively multiplayer online game.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc. , headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the Company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. In fiscal 2008, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.67 billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.

BioWare, Mass Effect, Dragon Age and Jade Empire are trademarks or registered trademarks of EA International (Studio and Publishing) Ltd. in the U.S. and/or other countries. EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Nintendo DS is a trademark of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept the responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. via FOX Business

July 2007 - July 2008 NPD Hardware Sales Analysis & The Truth About Third Party Software Sales

read more | digg story

Burnout Paradise will soon be available for download via the PSN service but there has yet to be a complete Xbox 360 triple A game available for download. Are Sony setting a benchmark for the digital distribution of console games?

read more | digg story

A portion of a GameDaily interview with Atari CEO Jim Wilson…

BIZ: You’re bringing N+ to the DS and PSP, but the Q1 revenue breakdown was heavily slanted towards PS3 and 360. Is Atari looking to do more on portables and on Wii?

JW: Yes. At E3, we showed N+, a Jamie Oliver What’s Cooking? title for the DS, the Backyard Sports franchise for the DS… There’s certainly more that you’ll see announced this year that will come out for the DS and PSP. Certainly on the Wii, we have opportunities that we’ll be announcing also. Obviously, Backyard Sports on the Wii has done very well for us and will continue to be part of our franchise strategy there. So yes, you’ll be seeing more on those platforms from us.

BIZ: Is there a certain percentage that you’re targeting for how to balance the portfolio, like 50% on Wii or something?

JW: We’re not exactly setting those types of goals for ourselves. We look at the franchises we think are important to us and we evaluate those franchises for the platform that it makes the most sense on, the audience we’re looking to [target]. As a franchise company, we look at what platforms make the most sense. We definitely look at the platform lifecycles and pricing in the market. We do a careful analysis of the platforms, but at the same time, as a franchise owner, we are focused on the platforms that make the most sense for our titles.

BIZ: Is there any thinking of getting more into digital distribution on XBLA, PSN, WiiWare or leveraging your own Atari classics with a PC portal?

JW: We already are in the business of digital distribution, but on the Atari website, which will be updated, it will be more readily seen and readily available. We are involved in a number of digital distribution initiatives, whether it’s powered by Digital River or other companies that we’re working with. It’s definitely a stronger focus for us in the future, and that’s something from a portfolio perspective that we’re much more focused on going forward. We are doing products on XBL already and we will continue to focus on building that business as well as PSN and the WiiWare business.

Full interview here

Other than major acquisitions, Electronic Arts has less disruptive ways of working with external developers.

read more | digg story

A new survey from Game Developer Research shows that most developers are creating PC games, and for console developers 360 is number one.

According to the 2008 Game Development Survey, a new 180-page report from Game Developer Research that questions nearly 2,000 developers from North America and elsewhere (mostly Europe), the PC still rules the development roost. 70 percent of those surveyed said they are making games for the PC/Mac, compared to 43 percent who are making console games, 28 percent who are making games for web platforms and 16 percent who are making portable games (DS, PSP).

Interestingly, on the console front, console developers seem to show a preference for Microsoft's Xbox 360. 73 percent are creating games for 360, 58 percent (including some of the same respondents) for PS3, and 42 percent for the Wii. 15 percent are also still creating games for the PS2. "This implies that the greatest amount of Western console developers by sheer numbers are creating games for Microsoft's console-- but due to team size differences, this doesn't necessarily imply that more games will appear on the Xbox 360 than other consoles," explained Game Developer Research.

In terms of portables, of those developers making handheld games, 75 percent said they are creating games for the Nintendo DS compared to 45 percent for the PSP – not too surprising considering the massive installed base of the DS.

The rest of the report delves into trends in programming language, purchasing habits and development choices regarding tools, game engines, etc. The report is selling for the price of $2,495 at the Game Developer Research website.

via GameDaily

NPD released its latest report on the gaming industry yesterday. While the headline is that Extreme Gamers (just 3%) play an average of 45 hours per week and bought 24 titles in the last three months , i was also interested to see the inroads that digital distribution has made:

The Advent of Digital Purchases
In total, gaming consumers indicated approximately 14 percent of games purchased in the past 3 months were digital downloads. Avid PC Gamers had the highest incidence with 27 percent of their purchases being digital. In terms of content, more than half of Extreme Gamers and just over a third of Avid PC Gamers stated they would definitely download a feature to enhance a specific game that they own.

This is partly a function of the increased importance of the PC as a gaming platform, and the growing number of casual gamers:

Of the 174 million gamers who personally play games on PC/Mac or video game systems, 3 percent are Extreme Gamers, 9 percent are Avid PC Gamers, 17 percent are Console Gamers, 14 percent Online PC Gamers, 15 percent are Offline PC Gamers, 22 percent are Young Heavy Gamers and 20 percent are Secondary Gamers.

The rise of free to play games, almost all of which are downloaded, is another driver of this trend.

Digital distribution, and hence the ability to variablize marketing and distribution costs is one of the key drivers of games 2.0.

via Lightspeed Venture Partners

What's wrong with this picture? It ain't necessarily so. Computers connected to the Internet can bring the gaming world to your desktop. Thanks to various download options, there's no reason why you can't access computer games without venturing outside.

There are several ways to get access to online gaming content, depending on whether you're a console player or a PC gamer. Microsoft has signed millions to its XBox Live network, an online gaming community accessed through the XBox games console.

"XBox Live is the largest social network in the living room," says Craig Flannagan, Xbox Live and all access gaming marketing manager for the company. Around 12 million users send each other three million messages across the network each day, and the firm has served almost five billion game sessions across the service since it launched.

In addition to playing each other on the network, XBox Live users can download XBox Live Originals -- complete games like Halo, and many of the games from the original version of the XBox.

"You can also download free, playable demos (of the latest games) so that consumers can try before they buy," says Flannagan, although buying those new games online doesn't seem to be an option, presumably because Microsoft doesn't want to cannibalize its retail channel.

Players with the PlayStation 3 can join the PlayStation Network, which also provides access to downloadable demos and around 70 downloadable games, covering everything from bowling through to poker.

Nintendo launched a competing download service in May for its Wii console. Called Wii Ware, it is available through the Wii Shop channel (one of several different services available when Wii owners connect their console to the Internet).

Wii Ware is designed to offer software developers a cheap and low-risk way to sell downloadable games online. It follows up an existing service called Virtual Console, that published old console games online, enabling players to take a trip down memory lane.

The Wii Ware service is likely to match another category of game download from XBox Live, called XBox Live Arcade. Players who don't have time for more involved games can choose from a range of casual game genres including retro, puzzle, and board games.

"For casual games, the norm tends to be older, between 30 and 50, and also tends to be skewed toward females," says Jamie Berger, senior vice president of consumer products and technology for IGN Entertainment. IGN operates Direct2Drive, which sells downloadable games to video gamers. He would like to be in that market, but right now is settling for the more traditional younger male user, who prefers more involved, extended games.

Like Microsoft, Direct2Drive only sells the games online (rather than renting them for use over a certain time period).

The company, which also sells online 'cheat sheet' strategy guides for many games, sells a range of newer and older titles for download.

more >>>

Market research firm the NPD Group has published its Games Segmentation 2008 report, revealing that the US gaming population totals approximately 174 million.

The report, which was compiled using information collected from more than 20,000 members of NPD’s online consumer panel aged two and above before weighting final survey data to represent the US population, divides the total number of gamers into seven “gamer segments” and analyzes their ownership and usage patterns.

The report classifies three percent of the total 174 million gamers as Extreme Gamers, nine percent as Avid PC Gamers, 17 percent as Console Gamers, 14 percent as Online PC Gamers, 15 percent as Offline PC Gamers, 22 percent as Young Heavy Gamers and 20 percent as Secondary Gamers.

Young Heavy Gamers is the largest segment with over 38 million gamers. Young Heavy Gamers typically make up at least one third of any system’s owners and tend to favor portable platforms – six out of every ten DS and PSP owners fall into the segment.

In contrast, Extreme Gamers show a strong preference for PS3 and Xbox 360. On average, Extreme Gamers play games for a total of 22.3 hours per week, and have purchased nearly 24 titles across all their systems in the past three months, although the segment is the smallest of the seven identified in the report.

“Although Extreme Gamers are heavily involved with the industry, they represent a small portion of the potential market for any new game that comes to market,” said NPD analyst Anita Frazier. “In order to promote continued growth, we must better understand all of the gaming segments.”

According to the report, while the PC is used more than any single console for gaming, Console Gamers, Young Heavy Gamers and Extreme Gamers are more likely to use consoles than a PC to play videogames.

Console Gamers spend 8.2 hours per week playing games on average, and purchased 3.2 games in the past three months.

Among current generation console owners, PlayStation 3 owners are most likely to own other current gen consoles. The report also found that just ten percent of PlayStation 2 owners also own a PlayStation 3.

On the subject of digital purchases, 14 percent of games purchased in the past three months across all segments were digital downloads, with Avid PC Gamers making 27 percent of their purchases digitally.

More than half of Extreme Gamers and just over a third of Avid PC Gamers said that they would definitely download a feature to enhance a specific game that they own.

Note: The Games Segmentation 2008 report was conducted in January, meaning that questions that refer to consumer behavior in the past three months include the Christmas/Hanukkah holidays.

After a slight technical hiccup which saw high web traffic bring the official site down, a host of details about the upcoming Star Trek Online have been unveiled by developer Cryptic Studios.A new gameplay trailer has been posted on the Star Trek...

read more | digg story

A new reseller services portal allows Ingram Micro Canada customers to renew service and software licensing contracts automatically online.

Powered by MaintenanceNet, the portal offers e-mail notifications, access to contract renewal information, unattached/warranty products and online product registration. IT providers can also use the portal's interface to organize and list customer service contracts and licensing agreements by expiration date or manufacturer or end user; then easily search by client or serial number. Inventory and customer reports can also be generated based on selected criteria.

"Service renewal contracts are one of the more reliable ways solution providers can increase revenues and profits, yet managing and selling these services has been a time-intensive, challenging process," says Justin Crotty, Vice President, Services, Ingram Micro North America. "Our new Reseller Services Portal takes the headache out of renewing services by automating the process. MaintenanceNet gives us a simple web-interface that tracks maintenance contracts, warranties and leases, and helps solution providers maximize their services contract annuity revenues."

This program has already been running in the U.S. for the past two years, so it’s due time to have come to Canada. It officially went live north of the border last month, and Microsoft Canada has been the key vendor participating in the program. Ingram Micro Canada says that additional manufacturers are scheduled to come on board over the next few months.

“By using our technology, Ingram Micro is providing its solution providers with an efficient way to manage and sell renewals on expiring contracts and volume license agreements,” says Scott Herron, CEO of MaintenanceNet. “In addition to incremental services revenues, expiring contracts can also pull through new hardware sales and service opportunities. It's really a win-win for everyone involved."

For more information on the reseller services portal from Ingram Micro Canada, call

1-877-755-5002; or e-mail servicenow@ingrammicro.ca.

via marketnews.ca

Mass adoption of cheap notebooks drives resilience to financial crisis in channel

read more | digg story

Microsoft’s venerable Money personal finance application is going away–from retail stores, at least. Over at ZDNet’s All About Microsoft, Mary Jo Foley reports on the fate of the application, which used to get a yearly update. There will be no 2009 version this Fall–Microsoft says it just doesn’t need a new version that often–and the program will be sold only via electronic distribution from now on.

There’s no way to interpret this as good news for Money (which looks like it’s officially known as Money Plus these days). If it were fabulously successful as a program that received annual updates and was sold in a box, Microsoft would just go on selling it that way for as long as it could. But I think that what’s happening to Money will happen to an awful lot of applications over the next few years–and that it will be a good thing for software consumers and software companies.

Even if desktop applications themselves stick around, selling them at retail stores is an awfully inefficient way to get them into the hands of customers. Anyone with a broadband connection can snag a current copy of nearly any major application reasonably quickly by downloading it–and in most cases can start with a free trial version and then pay only after confirming that the app is worth the dough. It’s a lot more efficient, and nobody has to kill any trees or put gas in any delivery trucks. And the software publisher doesn’t have to cut a retail store or distributor in on its profits.

In the old days, boxes of software filled aisle after aisle at stores such as CompUSA. These days, CompUSA is no longer a national chain, and the software sections in Best Buy and Circuit City are small, archaic, and not particularly crowded with shoppers. Come to think of it, I can’t remember the last time I bought an application in boxed form anywhere…

As for Money not receiving a 2009 update, that seems a little odd–especially since Microsoft is releasing that news in August, presumably long after development work for Money 20009 would have begun. But the frequent updates for Money and arch-rival Intuit Quicken haven’t necessarily been good things for consumers. Both applications have been around for so long that they’ve had all the key features for eons; both have added features that haven’t been a big whoop–or, in some cases, which some customers have actively disliked. And Microsoft and Intuit have both tried to nudge consumers to upgrade by disabling the online banking features in older versions, a strategy which–no surprise!–tends to drive people bonkers.

When you think about it, annual upgrades are both too frequent and not frequent enough. The need to release a Money 2005 and Money 2006 and Money 2007 and Money 2008 forced Microsoft to introduce new features whether it had anything especially compelling to offer or not. But when Microsoft did have something new and worthwhile to offer, it had to wait for the annual upgrade to add it.

One of the many virtues of online applications is that they can add features in a more logical fashion: frequently and instantly when there’s new stuff worth adding, and not at all when there isn’t. That’s Google’s strategy with its services, and it seems to work for everyone involved.

My guess is that the end of retail distribution and annual updates for Money means that the program is headed into limbo, and may never receive another significant upgrade. If I used it–and Money has millions of customers, even if it never succeeded in crushing Quicken–I’d keep that in mind and would at least consider moving to Quicken, which will surely be around for a long time in its current form.

But if Microsoft did keep Money around as a download-only application, updating it only when it could make clear improvements, that would be kind of cool. It wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing for current Money users, and it might be a sign of things to come for application distribution in general.

That’s assuming that it doesn’t want to make Money into a Web-based application, though–and it won’t be long before the days are numbered for almost any desktop application that doesn’t have some sort of online version.If you’re reading this, you’re part of the last generation for whom software was primarily something that was stored on a local drive rather than on the Internet.

And here’s a prediction I feel utterly comfortable making: The day just isn’t all that far off when BestBuy will quietly decide to stop selling computer software, period. If it has anything more than a small, perfunctory shelf of the stuff in 2012, I’d be startled…

via Technologizer

The music industry isn't seeing enough benefit from the hugely successful music game genre, according to a Warner Music exec.

Warner Music chief Edgar Bronfman said in a Forbes piece, "There is what I would call a very paltry licensing fee per song" in music deals with game companies.

Warner Music has big-name bands appearing in Actvision's Guitar Hero, not the least of which is Metallica. Activision is set to publish Guitar Hero: Metallica, and will also release Metallica's upcoming album, "Death Magnetic" as downloadable content in Guitar Hero III and Guitar Hero World Tour.

In January, Activision Blizzard announced that its hit Guitar Hero franchise had generated over $1 billion in sales. That amount is growing, as the company introduces new iterations of the series and releases more paid downloadable music.

MTV Games' Rock Band has sold over 1.5 million copies.

Both franchises have sold millions of individual songs through digital distribution via online marketplaces such as Xbox Live and PlayStation Network.

Bronfman said, "I think the industry as a whole needs to take a very different look at this business and participate more fully and in a much more partnership way. And if that does not become the case, as far as Warner Music is concerned, we will not license to those games."

The exec also stated in a separate Reuters report, "The amount being paid to the music industry, even though their games are entirely dependent on the content we own and control, is far too small." via Edge