Gears of War: Exile was rumored to be an on rails shooter that would primarily use the Kinect. However, Epic Games has confirmed that the game will never see the light of day.
“Let’s just bury the hatchet now,” said Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski. “Gears of War: Exile was an unannounced game that I can’t give any details about that has since been canceled.”
Source: GameSpot.com {link no longer active}
A recent Luxury Institute study asserts that viral games like Angry Birds and Words With Friends are “prime spots for luxury mobile marketing.” The early 2012 survey showed that 67 percent of individuals with a net average worth of $2.8 million shop via mobile, spending an average of $628.
Additionally, 60 percent of luxury consumers in the U.S. own smartphones, with 28 percent using an iPhone, 22 percent using an Android and 16 percent on BlackBerry phones. 80 percent have downloaded an app and 73 percent of these individuals use apps at least once a day.
“Apps are becoming ubiquitous, so it’s what we do with them that make the experience more extraordinary that will make the difference,” said Milton Pedraza, CEO of the Luxury Institute. “How the app is being used by the consumer or to contact someone who represents the brand is now where the real opportunity lies.”
The most downloaded apps by these millionaires are Angry Birds, Facebook and Words With Friends. The report recommends “humanistic experiences on mobile”and that luxury marketers should enhance the in-app experience.
“Brands do need to be as engaging as social media, but they cannot be gimmicky – they must be honest and real,” Pedraza said. “It is surprising that Facebook and games have reached all consumers, not just the young.”
Words With Friends has seen more luxury customers targeted with mobile banner ads for Nordstrom Rack locations. Also, Bergdorf Goodman used the app to drive foot traffic to stores with a location-based banner about an in-house event.
Source: BrandChannel
Facebook has announced that it will acquire photo-sharing app maker Instagram for $1 billion. The company with over 30 million registered users, started in 2010, lets users take and share photos on an iPhone then choose a filter to transform the look of the shot, and upload it to where others can comment and “like” the photos.
“We will try to learn from Instagram’s experience to build similar features into our other products,” said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. “At the same time, we will try to help Instagram continue to grow by using Facebook’s strong engineering team and infrastructure.”
Xfire has announced that it has signed a partnership with China Youth Goyor Technology. Xfire will be the first company to support in-game chat for customers using Chinese characters, allowing the 83 million members of the Communist Youth League (CYL) to use the company’s in-game social networking app to enhance their gaming experiences.
“Without question, there is a huge opportunity for Xfire in China and this partnership with CYL will be essential to our success there and in other key Asian markets,” said Xfire CEO Malcolm CasSelle. “I am excited for the opportunity to bring Xfire’s services to millions of Chinese gamers through this joint venture with CYL. Our new product roadmap will make a huge impact on core gamers worldwide, including the China market.”
Xfire Chairman of the Board William Quigley said, “The entire board is excited about the growth opportunities that Malcolm has created for Xfire in our primary Western markets, and throughout the world.”
AOL has sold 800 patents to Microsoft for $1 billion. It is believed that the patents deal with various forms of Internet technology, including advertising, search and mapping, which would help Microsoft go up against Google in all of those areas.
“There is a fight for market share occurring on multiple fronts — technology, patents, advertising,” said Colin Gillis, an analyst with BGC Financial who covers Microsoft. “Microsoft, more so than others out there, has been (using) its patent portfolio as a way to generate license fees. This should strengthen that.”
AOL’s shares surged to their highest level in more than a year following the announcement, which will give AOL a license to the patents they sold. “The combined sale and licensing arrangement unlocks current dollar value for our shareholders and enables AOL to continue to aggressively execute on our strategy to create long-term shareholder value,” AOL Chairman and CEO Tim Armstrong said in a statement.
Source: AP {link no longer active}
Mortal Kombat is coming to PS Vita, bringing all of the hardcore fighting action you love to a portable screen. This live action trailer teases us with the alluring Kitana and her fans.
This second trailer for The Dictator shows that not everything will be peachy for Supreme Leader Shabazz Aladeen in New York. Find out more about the movie at www.republicofwadiya.com.
This Nike Free Run+ ad mixes the love of running with the love of another person. This spot shows how strong running reunites a long distance couple.
{linked video marked “private”}
The Madden 13 cover vote has been going on for about a month now and the original field of 64 has been chipped away to the final eight candidates. Fan voters have come out in force casting over 16 million votes thus far, eclipsing the 13 million votes cast in last year’s vote with three rounds to go! Fans can make their voices heard at www.ESPN.com/MaddenVote to cast their vote for who they believe should be on this year’s cover. Voting for the third round ends on April 11. Fans can visit the Madden NFL Facebook page or the SportsNation page join discussions about the cover vote. They are also encouraged to tweet their Cover Vote picks using the hashtag #MyMaddenCoverVote on Twitter.
Download the free Marvel augmented reality app {link no longer active} right now and bring the Marvel Universe to life like never before utilizing your iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad 2. By opening the app and scanning select Marvel products featuring the Marvel AR logo, you’ll unlock exclusive content starring the world’s most popular super heroes– including Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Hulk and more! Go behind the scenes of your favorite comics, experience mind-blowing 3D action scenes, see new footage, get caught up on past events.
