Google Acquires Motorola

AUG. 15, 2011 • Google Inc. will pay nearly $12.5 billion to acquire Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. Although Google has marketed its own Android phones with hardware sourced from partner electronics manufacturers, the acquisition of Motorola puts the company in direct competition with smartphone makers who use the Android OS. No change is expected in Google’s policy of giving rights to use Android to these hardware manufacturers for free in order to buil.....

Analysis Focus On Korean Game Publishers

AUG. 12, 2011 • South Korea is one of the most advanced PC online gaming markets in the world thanks to savvy Internet users and modern infrastructure – fast broadband, payment solutions, and security to name a few. However, there have not been many comprehensive reports on this unique Korean gaming market in the United States. With the growing acceptance of the free-to-play (F2P), micro-transaction model in the West, there .....

HTC Invests in Beats Electronics

AUG. 11, 2011 • The Taiwan-based smartphone maker HTC Corp is buying a 51% controlling share in U.S. specialty headphone designer Beats Electronics for $309 million. Beats markets enhanced headphones that reproduce a fuller spectrum of audio, and was launched by music producer Jimmy Iovine, and rap artist Dr. Dre. The move is seen as a way to enhance HTC’s products against competition from Apple and Samsung. .....

Zynga’s Paying Customers

AUG. 11, 2011 • In a regulatory disclosure, Zynga reported that only 5% of its 232 million average monthly active users purchase virtual items. Zynga reported revenue of $242.8 million for the quarter ending March 31. For the period, Zynga said its top games accounted for 63% of revenue. The company filed July 1 for an initial public offering of up to $1 billion. Impact: At first glance many .....

Interview: En Masse Still High On Subscriptions

AUG. 11, 2011 • MMOs are changing. There’s the wide adoption of the virtual item, free-to-play (F2P) model, of course. Embracing F2P for MMOs can attract an audience that may not have tried the same game if a retail box purchase and a monthly subscription were necessary. Yet lowering the barriers to playing MMOs is not a substitute for originality. The traditional, Dungeons & Dragons ruleset-based fantasy experience that predominates in these online games .....

Razer Opens Taipei Design Center

AUG. 6, 2011 • Gaming peripheral company Razer opened its third product design center in Taipei. The first two centers were established in San Francisco and Singapore. The Taipei team will support other design centers at first, but will take on other responsibilities as staff is increased from 20 to 100 employees during the next year. Impact: While China gets most of the attention during discu.....

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