Twitter, unlike Facebook, has a do-not-track options for those that want to keep their info private. This has significance for both companies and for the user experience on the Internet in general.
Find out more in the full story at iMediaConnection.
—
SHOUT. Join the dialogue and get the latest news updates. Follow [a]list daily on Twitter.
Pinterest is one of the up and coming social media services and it’s something that every media company should take notice. There are things that companies should be aware of to leverage that popularity to expand the reach of press releases.
Get five tips on using Pintrest at ConvinceandConvert.com.
—
SHOUT. Join the dialogue and get the latest news updates . Follow [a]list daily on Twitter.
NCsoft and ArenaNet have confirmed that Guild Wars 2 has already sold 1 million copies both for pre-order at retail and through the official website. Those that pre-purchased ahead of time were able to start playing the game three days early during the HeadStart weekend.
“This is the culmination of a 5-year journey and to be greeted by this level of enthusiasm by our fans is truly amazing,” said Mike O’Brien, president and co-founder of ArenaNet. “But really our work is just beginning. Now our focus is shifting to building on this living world we’ve delivered, continuously refining our game and improving services to ensure our players have the best possible experience.”
The HeadStart weekend maxed out at 400,000 simultaneous players. Guild Wars 2 is available for purchase at buy.guildwars2.com.
Coca-Cola is looking to hire a Gaming Producer to make games for the Fanta brand. While experience building games is expected, global marketing and branding experience is seen as an absolutely necessity.
“Fanta is moving into production with 2-3 gaming production projects and we would like this individual to play a strategic production role to inform and guide the Content Excellence team of best practices in managing gaming companies, negotiation and gaming contracts,” reads the description. “He/She will help us to get to the most efficient production budget, schedules and management of our gaming production house resource agency as possible.”
What Coca-Cola is hoping to produce is two to three games made from scratch using Unity for Facebook, iOS and Android along with six HTML5 mini-games for Fanta. They’re looking to start in October, with a schedule of two months for planning and six months of production.
“We are looking for someone that has had 5-8 years of hands on ‘Gaming Production’ experience, managing the production of web games for such platforms as Facebook, iOS and Android operating systems as well as knowledge of how to work with games on Unity technology platforms and HTML5. Please contact Rachel Holbrook at: rholbrook@coca-cola.com with resume,” concludes the job posting.
Red Bull Media House announced that it is working with Microsoft Studios to co-publish Red Bull Crashed Ice Kinect on Xbox Live Arcade. Based on the global sporting series, it has Ice Cross Downhill gameplay on five different tracks, with split-screen multiplayer support.
“For any developer it’s a huge opportunity getting their hands on a fresh IP like Crashed Ice,” shared Michael Putz, Game Director at Bongfish. “Combining the nature of this unique sport with the power of Kinect should result in an outstanding experience and evolve digital sports to its next level.”
Red Bull Crashed Ice Kinect will be playable for the first time at PAX Prime from August 31 through September 2 in the Microsoft booth. The game is expected to release this Winter.
While Beyond: Two Souls has a similar focus on cinematic themes that Heavy Rain did, it is otherwise a completely different project in terms of scope and characters. David Cage, founder of Quantic Dream, said that his ability to do this was a credit to Sony.
“Many publishers, after the success of Heavy Rain, would have said, ‘Well, you need to do Heavy Rain 2. And do what you want, but it’s going to be called Heavy Rain 2.’ And we never had this conversation with Sony. They just asked me, ‘What’s next What do you want to do ‘ ‘Well, I have this idea, what do you think ‘ ‘Yeah. It looks great!'” Cage said. “We talked about it, explained the concept. They never asked for me to change anything in my script. And, no, total freedom. I think this kind of project can only be made in complete freedom, because otherwise it’s not the same experience at all. I’m not the kind of guy who works on command and someone tells you, ‘You should write something about sci-fi, or about this, or about that.'”
“I think the real value of this type of experience is that they are true and they are sincere. It’s really a story that I needed to tell, and Sony gave me the opportunity to do it, which is quite unique. It’s really incredible in this industry to have the possibility to work like that,” added Cage. “Very few developers are in my position, so I feel incredibly fortunate to be here, having this level of creative freedom, and at the same time having the financial means of a triple-A title. Usually, you make indie development, and you have limited resources, but you have freedom, or you work on a triple-A and you have the resources, but limited or no creative freedom. And I’m in the strange position where I have both.”
Source: Gamasutra
A new patent by Sony could make TV commercials more interactive. One suggestion is that users could shout “McDonalds” in order to skip the rest of a McDonalds ad, not unlike what some Internet ads have you do – typing in some brand word to skip the rest of a video ad.
This patent goes beyond mere voice recognition, however. Suggested genres include shooting, racing, trivia and fighting games, with one example in particular given of using a motion controller to throw a “pickle” at the screen to complete a hamburger.
While there are some obvious issues with discrepancy, people’s individual TV set ups and what sort of hardware they have to use, there’s still vast potential. Data could be collected from such actions and make TV ads a more worthwhile experience, rather than something that’s muted and looked away from.
Source: Promaxbda.org {link no longer active}
Square Enix has launched a new browser-based gaming service called CoreOnline. Currently, this Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer supported service features Hitman: Blood Money and Mini Ninjas, with Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light and Tomb Raider: Underworld promised soon.
“Square Enix is at the forefront of experimentation of new business and services models in the game industry,” said CEO Yoichi Wada. “Through our CoreOnline technology service, users can access our content easily through the browser.”
Games are divided into chapters and players can watch ads during breaks between chapters or pay a small fee. Save data is all stored in the cloud, allowing players to pick up their progress at any point and continue.
Zynga chief creative officer Mike Verdu has left the company, following soon after the departure of COO John Schappert. Verdu will start his own mobile company and the departure appears to be an amicable one.
“I personally don’t want to add to the noise level,” said Verdu. “I think this will be a good thing for me and for Zynga. I’m concerned about how this might be viewed with what else is going on, but it’s not a function of anything else going on at the company. I love the guys that I work with; I would go to war with these guys at my side anytime. Leaving them is hard.”
“Mike has been a good friend to me personally as well as professionally, and has been an influential creative leader to us all,” said Zynga CEO Mark Pincus in a statement. “I’m proud of the legacy that Mike has helped build and the deep bench of creative talent and leaders who will carry the torch and shape the next wave of creativity at Zynga. Zynga will be on the ground floor with Mike on his next venture as an investor in his new start-up. We are excited for Mike in this next chapter in his distinguished career and we are grateful for his contributions to Zynga.”
Source: AllThingsD
Lance Armstrong recently gave up his fight against the USADA charges that he used performance-enhancing drugs. While this bans him from the sport of cycling for the rest of his life, and will likely see all of his accolades and wins striped from him in an official capacity, sponsors appear to be sticking with him for now.
Nike, the world’s largest sportswear maker, beer company Anheuser-Busch and sunglasses maker Oakley all said they will be standing by the cyclist. Other sponsors, such as bike-maker Trek Bicycle Corp and fitness club operator 24 Hour Fitness said they were monitoring the situation.
“Lance has stated his innocence and has been unwavering on this position. Nike plans to continue to support Lance and the Lance Armstrong Foundation, a foundation that Lance created to serve cancer survivors,” Nike said in a statement.
Armstrong’s final statement on the matter of performance-enhancing drugs asserted his innocence while capitulating to the charges by the USADA. This amounts to a plea of “no contest” where he accepts the punishment, but won’t go in front of the arbitration on the matter, which would have likely put him in a damning light by those accusing him
Still, Armstrong has raised $470 million for cancer research, in part through the 84 million yellow bands it has distributed. Robert Boland, professor of sports management at New York University, said that the biker’s work work on cancer will help blunt the impact of the doping allegations. “His story has not been diminished. Here’s a guy who essentially was at death’s door with cancer and came back. That example still makes him very compelling,” Boland said.
Still, Boland notes it could be difficult for Armstrong to continue to endorse bicycles or bicycle equipment since he can no longer appear at competitions. “If he can’t show up at certain events, how do you use him ”
Armstrong makes $150,000 per speaking engagement, which he does about twenty per year. Bill Stapleton, Armstrong’s agent, predicts that Armstrong will remain “incredibly marketable” because his fans will stay loyal. “I think if we talked in five years, he’ll still be making speeches, he’ll still have his sponsors, and his foundation will have made over a billion dollars,” said Stapleton.
The Lance Armstrong Foundation actually saw a 30 percent spike in donations after the cyclist’s public statement on the matter. SportsOneSource analyst Matt Powell thinks some sponsors will lay low for a while and base their next actions on what has come to light.
“I don’t think it will affect his sponsors unless at some point it’s proven that he’s taken drugs,” Powell said.
AB InBev confirmed Armstrong would continue to be a spokesman for its beer, Michelob Ultra. “He has inspired millions with his athletic achievement and his commitment to helping cancer survivors and their families,” said Paul Chibe, vice president of U.S. marketing.
Honey Stinger, a maker of energy bars and gels that Armstrong also co-owns, will continue working with him and will continue to support the Lance Armstrong Foundation. There was no immediate comment from Armstrong’s other corporate sponsors, including RadioShack and exercise bike maker Johnson Health Tech.
George Belch, a founder of San Diego State University’s Sports Business MBA program, thinks his retirement means he isn’t a big brand target anymore, but will continue to be attractive to smaller brands. “I don’t see the Fortune 500 companies knocking on his door anymore,” Belch said.
Source: Reuters.com
