Ad Age Viral Video Chart Week Of Oct. 12

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Ad Age charts the top 10 viral videos for week of October 12, with number of views for the week and percentage change in views for videos that stayed on the chart.  The list is compiled by Visible Measures.

A notable entry into this week s chart isn t necessarily compelling viral content.  A new video for a fitness device called the Shake Weight debuts at number four with 468,000 views.  The new video seems to have driven traffic to an older one for the same product, enough to bring the original video back on Ad Age s chart.  The older Shake Weight video sits at number five with 423,000 views.  It reinforces the residual effect a follow-up to successful viral video can have, drawing new viewers for the original video that launched the campaign.

Microsoft’s Project Natal video is number 6 with more than 405,000 views for the week.  It has now been on the chart for 20 weeks.

Check out the full list and watch the videos at Ad Age {link no longer active}.

Edge-Online Games Index Week Of Oct. 19

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Edge-Online continues its nifty feature launched last week.  The outlet is partnered with marketing metrics firm Brandwatch to chart online buzz for top UK games on a weekly basis.  Edge will feature the top ten games charted by Brandwatch, along with a topical index pinpointing buzz for a specific area such as a game genre or franchise.  Unfortunately this week’s topical index is postponed due to what Edge calls a technical glitch.

Data from the main index shows Uncharted 2: Among Thieves  dominating UK game chatter.  Sony s PS3 title easily tops the list, doubling number two Bethesda’s Fallout 3 in mentions.  Yet Fallout 3 edges out Uncharted 2 in the positive comment category, beating it by two percent to garner the highest percentage of positive remarks at 54 percent.  Both games have about 9 percent negative sentiment.  The losers in the sentiment index for this week s are EA’s Brutal Legend and Need for Speed Shift, each getting about 12 percent negative remarks.

Check out the chart at Edge-Online {link no longer active}.

Focus Test Toys

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Writing for Fast Company, product designer Rob Tannen lists three high-tech gadgets that can facilitate consumer behavior research.  None of the devices are designed specifically for use in focus tests.  Rather, Tannen has pinpointed these off-the-shelf products as gadgets that help boost accuracy and efficiency in the cumbersome and error-prone process of collecting consumer test data.  He sees each gadget as facilitating one of three major areas of data collection: verbal, visual and movement.

Read more at FastCompany {link no longer active}.

Analyst Report Says DS And PSP Have Peaked

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A new report from DFC Intelligence says Apple iPhone and iPod Touch will fuel growth in the handheld game market, reports Industry Gamers.  DFC predicts the market for portable games will reach $11.7 billion by 2014, with Apple driving the majority of the growth to eventually make up nearly a quarter of the market.

Citing the report, DFC s David Cole suggests Sony PSP and Nintendo DS have peaked.  He sees the dedicated handheld game consoles maintaining their leads in market penetration, but remaining flat in growth as Apple’s multi-use devices gain a bigger foothold in games.  The firm also surveyed 8,000 people to find mobile gaming habits are on the rise.  It found 45 percent of Americans and 36 percent of Europeans surveyed have purchased apps in the past year, with Apple’s App Store the most popular service.

Read more at Industry Gamers {link no longer active}.

Ballmer Misspoke About Blu-Ray For 360

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Microsoft Xbox Live spokesman Larry Hryb (Major Nelson) has quelled rumors about a Blu-ray player for Xbox 360, reports Gamesindustry.biz.  The source of the rumor is none other than the company’s CEO Steve Ballmer.  In an interview with Gizmodo, Ballmer made a clear cut statement about Blu-ray drives as an accessory for the console.  Nelson’s response says no such device is planned for 360, and that Ballmer was referring to Blu-ray drives for PC.  Gamesindustry.biz points out that Ballmer has misspoken in the past about products in his company’s game division.

Read more at Gamesindustry.biz.

‘Left 4 Dead 2’ Watered-Down For Down Under

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EA and Valve have lost their appeal to Australia s ratings board to release the uncensored version of Left 4 Dead 2, reports Gamesindustry.biz.  Valve prepared an edited version that secured the country’s highest mature-game rating of 15+ in case the appeal was denied.  However EA and Valve had appealed to Australia’s Classification Review Board to release the full version.

EA and Valve have also lent their voices to a growing chorus lobbying to introduce an 18+ mature rating in Australia.  Among strong opposition to that movement is South Australia attorney-general Michael Atkinsonm, who has called any curtailing of content or product choice for Australians a small sacrifice to keep violent content away from vulnerable citizens.

Read more at Gamesindustry.biz.

Australia Ratings Board Wants To Review iPhone Apps

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The director of the Australian Classification Board has requested that the country’s censorship minister allow it to evaluate mobile phone apps for content, reports Kotaku.  The director appealed by letter to the Commonwealth Censorship minister that content purchased online or through mobile phones be required for submission, approval and rating certification by his organization.  Kotaku points out that the move comes on the heels of the Entertainment Software Association’s request that Apple carry its ESRB rating system in the U.S.

Read more at Kotaku.

DICE 2010 Speakers Announced

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The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has released the first list of headliners for the upcoming DICE 2010 summit, reports Gamesindustry.biz.  Academics dominate the stage thus far with planned presentations by researchers Dr. Susana Martinez-Conde and Dr. Stephen L Macknik from The Barrow Institute, and Professor Jesse Schell from Carnegie Mellon University.  Remedy Entertainment president Matias Myllrinne and OnLive founder Steve Perlman round out the initial list being publicized by AIAS.

The DICE 2010 summit is scheduled to take place at Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas February 17 through 19.

Read more at Gamesindustry.biz.

Customize Nikes With An iPhone

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A lot of iPhone app makers seem to default to mimicking Apple ads for promotional videos.  Tapping into the familiarity iPhone users have with the often-aired TV spots, perhaps trying to draw some credibility for their products, makes the tactic understandable for independent apps.  Yet as in the case of Pepsi’s Amp Up Before You Score, even branded apps have done it.  Being the high-minded brand and design driven company that it is, Nike does not go there.

Nike has rolled out an iPhone app for its NIKEiD concept, where people can create custom color sneakers.  It s a concept less aimed at turf jocks than fashion conscious youth, and Nike s spot promoting the app reflects that.  It also shows just how nicely NIKEiD fits into an iPhone app, where not only can custom creations be shared with friends and ordered right through the phone but the iPhone camera can capture usable colors.  The spot does an especially nifty job of getting the camera feature across.

Watch it at YouTube.