iPad Gets The Daily

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News Corp. has announced the release of a tablet-only newspaper called The Daily. The app will carry a yearly subscription fee of $39.99 or $.99 per week.

$30 million was spent in preparing the app. “It’s incredible to believe that something of this production value can be done every single day,” said Apple VP Eddy Cue.

The news-as-digital magazine will feature 360-degree photographs, interactive content, high definition video along with more standard newspaper offerings like horoscopes, weather and crossword puzzles. There will also be a ‘Apps and Games’ section with reviews of iPad software and links to the App Store, along with customizable scores and stats for a reader’s favorite sports teams.

Source: Apple Insider

CSI Facebook Game Promotion

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Ubisoft and CBS Consumer Products have announced that CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on Facebook now has over two million monthly active users. They’re also announcing a cross-promotion for the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Crime City social game.

Players are able to watch the TV episodes, which will give out clues that will unlock special bonuses in the game. These various answers will unlock free UbiCredits that provide energy points in the game.

To find out more, visit facebook.com/CSIcrimecity.

Rift Pre-Orders Grant Team Fortress 2 Items

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Trion Worlds is continuing to push hard for Rift leading up to the game’s release. They will be partnering with Valve for a cross promotion between Team Fortress 2 and the MMORPG.

Pre-ordering Rift will net Team Fortress 2 players the Pyro’s Sharpened Volcano Fragment and the Scout’s Sun-on-a-stick. Rift players will receive the Well-Spun Hat exclusively from Steam, while all pre-orders will receive the pets the Cockatrice Chick, Deep One Spawnling or Hellhound Pup.

Source: store.steampowered.com

Android Market Web Store Unveiled

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Google has announced that they have launched their new Android Market Web Store. Along with this Web-based version of the Android app store, Google announced that Android apps now have in-app purchasing; there’s also a new currency option for developers.

“The Android Market Web Store is basically the new way that users can get apps on their devices,” said Chris Yerga, Android engineering director for cloud services at Google. He added, “Developers who integrate with our in-app purchasing SDK can sell a variety of virtual goods within their apps.

Source: PC Magazine

Epic Games Sends Up Call Of Duty In Duty Calls

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Epic Games has unleashed a free online game titled Duty Calls: The Calm Before the Storm as a way to promote Bulletstorm. The target of the open parody is clear: Activision and its Call of Duty series.

“Wow. I’m blown away,” wrote Epic Games’ Cliff Bleszinski on Twitter. “This game will redefine military shooters for years to come.”

Download the game at http://www.thedutycalls.com/.

Zynga Poker Thief Busted

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Zynga has taken hacker Ashley Mitchell to court, where he has admitted to breaking into the controlled servers of Zynga Poker.  He posed as a game administrator over several months in 2009, acquiring 400 billion chips illegally and selling about one-third.

While the virtual poker chips were worth about $12 million, he only generated about $85,500 from their sale. Mitchell pleaded guilty to five charges brought under the Computer Misuse Act and the Proceeds from Crime Act at the Exeter Crown Court.

Source: BBC

Gamers Readily Play Casual Games: Newzoo Survey

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According to Newzoo’s National Gamers Surveys 2010, 88 percent of all gamers (and 67 percent of those online) in the U.S. play casual games on a gaming portal, social network or mobile device. 46 million Americans, which is a third of all casual gamers, play games on all three platforms, depending on their location.

“It is clear from our data that there is no such thing as ‘the typical casual gamer,’ as almost everyone plays a casual game at least now and again, including people playing World of Warcraft or Call of Duty Black Ops.” commented Peter Warman, Newzoo MD. “As games become a more integrated part of people s lives, there is a place and time for every type of game, regardless of platform.”

THQ: Movie-Based Kids Games Show Weakness

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THQ has developed something of a reputation over the years for licensed titles based on kids franchises like Nicktoons and Pixar films. However, the company is reporting a slowdown in this sector, and so the focus will instead be shifted to core titles like Homefront.

“We have re-evaluated our kids movie-based licenses and have lowered our expectations for games in this segment,” said THQ CEO Brian Farrell.

As far as successful properties, THQ pointed to uDraw tablet, which shipped 1.2 million copies over the holidays, and the upcoming De Blob 2. While they will make games based uponSpongeBob and Mattel franchises, Farrell is less optimistic about other parts of the market.

“The single-player kids’ games, particularly those based on movie licenses, were the ones that showed the most weakness,” Farrell explained. “What we learned this holiday season is new stuff, innovative stuff… you do something new and consumers, especially kids, respond to that. The single-player, ‘see the movie, play the game’ experience is what seems, at this time, not to be working.

Source: Gamasutra

Rio Ad Has Angry Birds Code

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Rovio recently announced that they will be teaming up with 20th Century Fox to cross promote Angry Birds in Rio. Additionally, the 30-second Super Bowl spot for the animated film will have an embedded code that will unlock a special level in Angry Birds.

“We get a lot of requests like, ‘You made ‘Angry Birds,’ can you make a game for us ‘” said Angry Birds creator Peter Vesterbacka. “Sure we can. But the smart brands are the ones who will work with the apps that have the audiences already and create experiences that will be integrated into the app.”

Also, users who complete this secret level will be entered in an official contest. The one grand-prize winner will be flown to the film’s March 22 premiere in Rio de Janiero, the same day the Angry Birds Rio app debuts.

This will be the first spot in the history of the Super Bowl that users will be necessitated to pause the spot and examine each frame to capture an embedded code. The spot will air during the game’s fourth quarter and be available after the Super Bowl on YouTube.

Source: Ad Age {link no longer active}