The BBC has seen a lot of buzz surrounding this season’s
“Doctor Who,” with the recasting of the titular role as well as the show’s omnipresent companion. Now it’s hoping that excitement will carry over into the gaming world.
The broadcaster has released the first two chapters of an episodic game based on the series (and featuring voice work by Matt Smith and Karen Gillan) to the U.S. and other territories. (U.K. gamers got their hands on it last month.)
While physical sales still hold a dominant position over 
digital downloads when it comes to videogame consoles, retail is in danger of losing that spot with PC gamers.
A study from the NPD Group, which tracks videogame sales, finds that digital downloads of PC games essentially reached parity with retail sales in 2009. Online purchases of full-game PC titles hit 21.3 million in the U.S. last year, compared with 23.5 million units purchased at stores.
Microsoft on Tuesday announced that Kinect,
its new gesture-recognition controller for the Xbox 360, will retail for $150 when it hits stores Nov. 4. That is in line with what the gaming world was expecting — but it may make the launch of the long-awaited system a bit less spectacular than people were hoping.
The company says the chief goal of Kinect is to attract new users to the Xbox 360. To achieve this, Microsoft will also offer a larger bundle, which includes an Xbox 360 (with 4GB of storage), a Kinect and “Kinect Adventures” for $299.
Looks like the rumors were pretty much spot-on when it came 
to Kinect pricing. Microsoft has announced that its new gesture-recognition peripheral will retail for $150 when it hits stores this November. That price will include a bundled version of the “Kinect Adventures” game.
Microsoft’s main focus with Kinect is to attract new users to the Xbox 360, so it will also offer a larger bundle, which includes an Xbox 360 (with 4GB of storage), a Kinect and “Kinect Adventures” for $299.
Microsoft’s gesture-recognition controller, Kinect, set to hit 
stores this November, will launch with a price tag of $150, the company announced Tuesday.
The peripheral, which will come with a copy of the “Kinect Adventures” game, is priced higher than many analysts and game industry executives were hoping for.
Netflix is taking the first steps to expanding globally. The online film rental service has announced plans to offer its streaming service to Canada beginning this fall.
The company will not offer rentals-via-mail to Canadians, as it does in the U.S. Instead, it is dubbing this expansion its “first streaming-only service.” Netflix, in recent years, has been focusing much more extensively on its online streaming services, striking U.S. partnerships with television and Blu-ray player manufacturers as well as video game consoles, Tivos and other devices.
Given the success Nintendo has had with the
revolutionary controller for the Wii, it was really only a matter of time before Microsoft and Sony followed the same path.
Both companies have spent millions of dollars developing their own motion control systems—and both have high hopes and expectations for their success.
Despite near-constant reminders, Americans aren’t really good at 
saving for retirement. And they’re likely to be just as bad at stretching their savings to last the entirety of their golden years. It’s a problem that has the government weighing whether to require plans to offer an option that can generate retirement income for their workers.
The Government Accountability Office recently solicited opinions from the financial community — and the general public — about ways to enhance the retirement security of citizens. At issue: Should the government force financial companies to offer lifetime income options that give retirees a predictable stream of retirement income for the remainder of their lives?
Critics and audiences don’t always agree. That’s a given.
But the gap between critical and commercial success in Hollywood is significantly wider than what you will find in the gaming world. Despite the fact that the film industry is more mature and nuanced, audiences often flock to films that make critics lose their lunch while gamers and critics tend to march together.
Stung by ongoing media criticism and consumer complaints 
over the iPhone 4’s antenna, Apple has announced it will offer a free case to the more than 3 million people who have bought the device since its launch three weeks ago – and anyone who buys one for the next two-and-a-half months.
Users who have already purchased a bumper or case for the device will receive refunds – and the free case offer will extend to anyone who buys an iPhone 4 through Sept. 30. It also is offering a full refund for people who return their iPhone within 30 days of purchase, waving the restocking fee.
Chris Morris: Journalist 