Author Archives: Chris Morris

This Year’s Video Game Summit: What to Expect

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If the video game world were following its normal cycle, console makers would be revealing details of their next generation systems in less than two weeks. This cycle is anything but normal, though – and so at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), game makers will instead chart a new path.

Rather than introducing new systems, Microsoft and Sony will both introduce motion sensor controllers that are intended to both attract a new audience to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 – and extend the lifespan of those systems by at least another three years. Nintendo, which is still seeing great success with the Wii, will focus instead on once again innovating the portable world.

Read more at CNBC.com

Rdio banks on clouds

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The founders of two of the Internet’shighest profile ventures are getting into the music business.

Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, co-founders of Kazaa and Skype, are teaming once again to unveil Rdio (pronounced “r-dee-o”), which kicks off a limited launch today. The service aims to blend social media, online music and portability.

Read more at Daily Variety

Steve Jobs forecasts the future of film

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Apple CEO Steve Jobs is a man who’s known for forward-looking (and often controversial) opinions. For the most part, those have centered around the computing world, but that the ongoing “D: All Things Digital” conference, he had a few thoughts about what might be coming for the film industry. 

“I … think you’ll be able to watch a first run movie before it hits theaters… if you want to spend a bunch of money,” he told the crowd in a question and answer session (according to onsite reporting from Engadget).

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

SOE, LucasArts team to launch ‘Clone Wars’ virtual world

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The Cartoon Network has seen a lot of success with its animated series “The Clone Wars”. Now Sony Online Entertainment (“EverQuest,” “Free Realms”) and LucasArts are teaming up to bring the pivotal tale of the Star Wars Universe to the virtual world.

The two companies will create a free-to-play, persistent world, dubbed “Star Wars: Clone War Adventures,” that’s scheduled to launch this fall. The game will be targeted at a younger audience and will launch online and in retail stores this fall. It will be a PC exclusive game.

Read more at Variety’s The Cut Scene blog

Two months… 2 million iPads sold

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If there was any lingering doubt, Apple has a hit on its hands with the iPad. In just 60 days, the company has sold 2 million of the devices. To put that in comparison, it took the iPhone 74 days to sell just 1 million units.

That count could have been even higher had it not been for some retail shortages. Whereas the iPhone was limited to the tech early adopter crowd, the iPad has been a hit with the broad population – enticing mainstream users at an unheard of rate.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

Video games gaining more time

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Core gamers are the lifeblood of the video game industry, buying more titles and playing more frequently than anyone else. They are the film world’s equivalent of the equivalent of the film world’s superfan, who visits the cinema multiple times each weekend. According to a study from the NPD Group, which also tracks retail sales of videogames, “extreme” gamers spend 48.5 hours per week playing games, while repping 4% of the total gamers in the U.S.

On the whole, U.S. gamers spend 13 hours per week playing games — 42 minutes more than last year. That’s still considerably less than the average American’s TV viewing habits, which clock in at 35 hours per week, according to Nielsen. But games are gaining.

Read more in Daily Variety

Getting a mortgage when you’re self-employed

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Ever since the 2008 financial meltdown and real estate crisis, banks have made some dramatic changes to their lending policies. That’s making it harder for the self-employed to secure a mortgage.

If you own a company and are in the market for a home, here are a few ways to ease the process and boost your chances of getting the loan.

Read more at Bankrate.com

How dedicated is the core gamer?

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The term “core” gamer gets thrown around a lot in this industry. It’s an easy way to describe the enthusiast audience, but statistically differentiating an avid fan of games from a regular enthusiast has been a bit trickier. Now, a newly released study from the NPD Group is shedding more light on the term. 

According to the organization, which tracks retail sales of video games, ‘extreme’ gamers (their buzzword for core) spend 48.5 hours per week playing games. (Yup. More than two consecutive days per week.) The ‘core’ audience, it says, represents 4 percent of the total gamers in the U.S.

Read more at Variety’s The Cut Scene blog

Lost finale sets BitTorrent record

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The “Lost” finale may not have set a ratings record, but pirates absolutely loved it.

TorrentFreak, a news site that covers the file sharing industry, reports the May 23 finale has broken all previous download records – with nearly 1 million people downloading the concluding chapters of the show in less than one day.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

Fox to air ‘Red Dead Redemption’ film

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Machinima (films that are made from the graphics engines and assets of video games) isn’t exactly a household word in most of America. And, despite its critical acclaim and strong sales, “Red Dead Redemption” probably isn’t either. 

That’s not stopping Fox from taking a gamble with the new title from Take Two Interactive Software and the makers of the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise. On Saturday May 29, the network will air a 30 minute short film made from the game at midnight.

Read more at Variety’s The Cut Scene blog