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Deloitte Identifies Top Trends in the Media Industry for 2005

January 18th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Trends | No Comments »

– Legal Music Downloads, Embedded Advertising, Customizing Mobile Phones among Key Trends –

Deloitte’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) industry group today announced its predictions for the media industry in 2005, forecasting that the year ahead will be driven by the public’s desire for more content, more media and more choices — leading to a market that is both larger and more diverse. More …

Mforma works on bringing entertainment to cell phones

January 17th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Companies & M&A | No Comments »

Rather than tell you, Dan Kranzler chooses instead to show you how he turned Mforma into a worldwide publisher of video games, ring tones and other hot downloads for mobile phones. From his wallet, he produces five gold frequent-flier cards. With United Airlines alone, he achieved premier status midway through the year.

His point: To build a business, you have to go out and get it. More …

Games industry squeeze forces staffing layoffs

January 17th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Trends | No Comments »

Simian Industries, the developer that created the Beano-town Racing game based on the comic book characters of Beano & Dandy, has laid off two-thirds of its staff and turned to contracting in a bid to deal with the feast and famine economics of the games industry.

Dundee-based Simian has retained a core group of five staff and will now put all its development work out to freelancers. Mark Ettle, the founder of Simian, is acting as a consultant to the business. Observers said the move reflected a trend emerging across Britain as the games sector follows in the footsteps of the film industry by looking for ways to reduce its fixed cost base through various forms of outsourcing. More …

Kongzhong game to use film’s success

January 14th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Games | No Comments »

Stephen Chow is happy these days. His latest film, "Kung Fu Hustle," has become a box office hit on the Chinese mainland.

Within days of its mainland release, the film, starring and directed by Chow, has earned more than 100 million yuan (US$12 million). It opened on December 23. Zhou Yunfan is also happy with the film’s success. His company, Kongzhong Corp, was the sole provider of wireless value-added services related to the movie. Now, Kongzhong Corp is considering using the film’s popularity to promote its mobile gaming business.

The firm spent 1 million yuan (US$120,000) to secure the official mobile value-added service sponsorship for the movie. Kongzhong Corp is expected to spend another 1 million yuan on related product development, advertising and promotions. More …

JAMDAT Mobile Invests in Chinese Wireless Content Distributor, C-Valley; Leading Wireless Entertainment Publisher Expands Distribution into China

January 13th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Companies & M&A | No Comments »

Global wireless entertainment publisher JAMDAT Mobile Inc. announced today an investment in Chinese wireless entertainment distributor, C-Valley. This investment allows JAMDAT to distribute its wireless content in China through C-Valley.

Based in Beijing, C-Valley is one of China’s leading wireless entertainment distributors. C-Valley has forged strong relationships with two of the largest wireless carriers in the world, China Mobile and China Unicom, and also developed comprehensive distribution services. The Company is led by Leo Liu, President and CEO, who was instrumental in launching some of the first wireless games and content in China during his tenure at Motorola China. More …

Sorrent and Atari to Publish BALDUR’S GATE for Mobile Phones; Leading Mobile Publisher Launches Wireless Game Based on Popular DUNGEONS & DRAGONS RPG Franchise

January 12th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Games | No Comments »

Sorrent, Inc., a leading creator and global publisher of mobile entertainment, today announced that, together with Atari, it has launched BALDUR’S GATE(TM) for mobile phones. More …

JAMDAT Buys Gaming Firm Downtown Wireless

January 10th, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Companies & M&A | No Comments »

Los Angeles-based JAMDAT Mobile announced that it has purchased Los Angeles-based Downtown Wireless, a developer of wireless entertainment games. Downtown is the developer of the game Downtown Texas Hold ‘Em. More … More …(2)

Location-based mobile phone games

January 3rd, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Location Based Gaming | 1 Comment »

Cool list of location based mobile gaming found here.

Calling all video gamers

January 1st, 2005 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Trends | No Comments »

In a market once dominated by men, cellular telephone makers find that women are as likely to download video games

Ana Carolina is someone who cell phone companies refer to as the Holy Grail of video gaming. When Carolina, 22, has a few minutes to kill and is not dialing friends or family on her cell phone, she uses it to play video games. "I’ll play when I’m waiting for something, like at the doctor’s or dentist’s office," said Carolina, a student at the University of Texas at San Antonio. "It makes time go by faster." More …

Vishal Gondal “We’re the leader in wireless games”

December 31st, 2004 by Arjan Olsder Posted in Companies & M&A | No Comments »

Indiagames Ltd is on Cloud 9. The Mumbai-based wireless game developer is in the process of finalising its new strategy and expansion plans after it signed a definitive agreement with TOM Online Inc, China that enables the latter to acquire a majority stake in Indiagames Ltd.
What is the road map for Indiagames?

What are its immediate plans? Vishal Gondal, founder and Chief Executive Officer, Indiagames Ltd, shares the company’s plans in an exclusive interview. More …