Xbox One Doesn’t Require ‘Always Online’

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Microsoft confirmed that the Xbox One will not require an Internet connection for basic functions like watching downloaded videos, using Blu-ray movies and playing games offline. However, much of the console’s functionality is designed specifically for the Internet and the cloud.

“Xbox One is designed to always be connected to the internet,” said Xbox U.K. marketing director Harvey Eagle.

In the realm of used games, Microsoft confirmed that it will be able to play second-hand software. However, the caveat was added that policies over how that occurs and whether that will require an additional fee for users to activate are still being formulated.

On backwards compatibility, Microsoft said that the architecture of the Xbox One will preclude either disc or downloadable Xbox 360 games from being played on the system. All music and movies will be available to download through Xbox Live, but Xbox 360 game software is not compatible with the Xbox One.

Source: GamesIndustry International

Assassin’s Creed Movie Pegged Memorial Day 2015

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The planned Assassin’s Creed film now has a release date of May 22, 2015. 20th Century Fox will distribute and co-produce with New Regency Pictures.

Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class, Prometheus) is set to star in the film and Michael Lesslie is currently working on the script. No director or supporting cast has been named.

Summer 2015 might be a big one for big tentpole films from Hollywood. Along with Assassin’s Creed, The Avengers 2 is expected to release earlier in May, with Star Wars: Episode VII likely to follow later that Summer.

Source: ComingSoon.net

Happy Cloud Raises $4.25 Million

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Happy Cloud announced that it has raised $4.25 million in series A funding led by Avalon ventures, with Jesselson Capital and Shaman Ventures contributing. Tamir Buchler, who recently was COO and CRO of the shopping network Pronto.com, was also named CEO of the on-demand cloud gaming service.

“Happy Cloud adds unparalleled value to the gaming ecosystem by eliminating barriers to entry and giving users what they want,” said Buchler. “By offering free on-demand access to the best high-end games, we can bring new gamers on board, increase conversions and keep gamers engaged.”

“Game quality and capacity continue to reach new heights, and as the gaming industry evolves, the need for a scalable on-demand technology becomes even more relevant,” added Avalon Ventures managing director Rich Levandov. “We’ve seen many solutions raise lots of capital and fail because they don’t scale. Happy Cloud is the only scalable technology of its kind and will dramatically disrupt the industry while creating value for the entire gaming world.”

Hasbro Moves To Prevent Dungeons & Dragons Movie

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While it was recently announced that a Dungeons & Dragons movie project called Chainmail was being set up by producer Courtney Solomon at Warner Bros. it may not be in motion for very long. Hasbro is asserting that they own the rights to any new Dungeons & Dragons movie and they are filing copyright and trademark infringement complaint against Solomon’s Sweetpea Entertainment to stop the announced project.

According to Hasbro, it did grant Sweetpea the right back in the 1990s to make one D&D movie, but they say that the feature rights went back to them once the titular film came out in 2000. The complaint goes on to say that two TV movies that played on the Sci-Fi Channel/Syfy in 2005 and 2012 were not connected at all to an exercise of feature sequel rights.

Source: Deadline.com

Dark Souls 2: Namco Treating Game ‘As A Massive, Massive Triple-A Title’

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The Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls releases saw somewhat muted advertising and PR campaigns in the West. By contrast, Namco PR director Lee Kirton says they are going all in for promotional efforts of Dark Souls 2.

“The good thing this time around is we’re investing more in it from a marketing perspective,” he said at a media preview event. “With Dark Souls and Demon’s Souls it was very focused, small-scale. We’re treating this as a massive, massive triple-A title.”

Source: OXM.co.uk

This Week’s [a]list Jobs – May 22

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[a]list daily is now your source for the hottest job openings for senior management and marketing in games, entertainment and social media. Check here every Wednesday for the latest openings. To see last week’s [a]list jobs click here.

Here are this week’s [a]list jobs:

  • Riot Games, eSports Marketing Manager (Greater Los Angeles Area)
  • Hulu, Content Marketing Manager (Greater Los Angeles Area)
  • Facebook, Lead of Global Marketing Solutions – Entertainment (Austin, Texas Area)
  • Live Nation Entertainment, Sales Director of Sponsorships – Venue Network (Phoenix, Arizona Area)

 

FEATURED JOBS:

 

Ayzenberg Group, one of the largest independent ad firms on the West Coast, is hiring. We’re currently looking to fill these positions: Creative Lead: Visual Design, Game Capture Artist, Lead Web/UI Software Engineer and more. Check out our Careers page to apply.

Mayer Gives Flickr A Makeover

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By Elena Zanone 

Yesterday Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer took to the stage at the company’s New York headquarters to debut a long awaited redesign for a majority of the Internet — the revamping of photography website Flickr.

The new and improved interface emphasizes high-resolution photographs, removing the wide open white space and clutter that once surrounded images. In addition to the aesthetic changes, the company is also generously giving all users one terabyte of storage free of cost. Yahoo! says that equates to an impressive 537,731 photos at 6.5 megapixels each.

“You can take all the pictures ever taken and upload them to Flickr . . . and there would [still be room].” Mayer said.

Yahoo! acquired Flickr back in 2005, but the photo-sharing service suffered under persistent mismanagement and Yahoo!’s inability to make Flickr better.

In fact, when Mayer took the CEO chair last year, a web campaign to redesign Flickr went viral. The website DearMarissaMayer.com launched and had one ask: “Please make Flickr awesome again.”

While Flickr suffered, Facebook and Pinterest became the dominant photo-sharing apps, and later, Instagram became the app of choice for photo sharing with friends and family.

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer even acknowledged that the Flickr acquisition “didn’t go so well.”

“I think Flickr is awesome again with these new announcements,” Mayer said. “Photos make the world go around. Flickr was awesome once. It languished. But now it’s awesome again.”

Flickr users seem to agree. The petition site now reads, “Dear Marissa Mayer, Thank you for making Flickr awesome again” in bold all caps.

Before

 

Now

“We’ve made Flickr spectacular,” Mayer said. “We’ve got full high-resolution photos. You don’t lose any fidelity. No one else does that.”

The improved Flickr photo platform came only hours after the company’s dramatic acquisition of blogging site Tumblr for $1.1billion.

Source: VentureBeat