- Pre Heads to Holland
It seems KPN has secured Palm Pre distribution for The Netherlands. A weblog called MobileCowboys found out that the device is listed as supported on one of their MVNO labels.
- Fishlabs Lands Barclaycard Deal
Following their Volkswagen advertgame, Fishlabs has landed yet another advertgaming contract. This time the developer will create a mobile game for the famous Barclaycard.
- Nickelodeon in iPhone Publishing
Nickelodeon has made two important announcements over the past few days. It announced that it will port it's popular flash games from AddictingGames.com to iPhone and that it will be open for publishing deals.
- Minick UK Fully Integrated into Net-M
Though Swisscom acquired 100% of Minick back in December 2006, it seems like Swisscom has sold Minick's UK office on to competitor Net-M.
- Cuttlefish, Another Engine Coming Along
This morning we received a tip about something called 'The Cuttlefish Engine'. Cute as it sounds, it is actually a full engine that allows developers to instantly release their games on iPhone, BlackBerry and Android.
- Pre Heads to Europe
It was uncertain for some time, but now Palm confirmed that a GSM configuration of their WebOS based Palm Pre device will finally head to Europe.
- iPhoneGamesBulletin Launches
Stuart Dredge, one of the journalists that is working at PocketGamer, has alaunched a new daily mailinglist committed to cover the latest and greatest about iPhone development and distribution.
- Nostromo Signs Exclusive Aggregation Deal for VF CZ
Nostoromo has won an exclusive contract with Vodafone Czech to provide content provisioning services for Vodafone's Live! internet and Live! mobile internet portals.
- MGB@DGA
The Dutch Games Association will be organizing DGA DAG in Hilversum/NL. MGB will be present just like a number of execs from the mobile games industry.
- Sonic Boom Signs Bight Games
iPhone publisher Sonic Boom has signed a deal to distribute iPhone games from developer Bight games. The deal kicks off with the availability of Big Top 10 on the App Store.
- WebOS Mojo SDK Leaked
For all those wanting to develop for WebOS, but unwilling to wait, there is a leaked version of the SDK floating around the internet. This might give many of you a head start with your games.
- Palm Open to WebOS Licensing Deals
It seems Palm is very happy with the success of their new WebOS. Just like their PalmOS, the company is now considering to let other hardware vendors make use of the OS.
- Windows Marketplace Opens With 600 Apps
In an interview with the French Windows Mobile Product Manager Audrey Zolghadr, she explained that the Windows Mobile Marketplace will start off with only 600 applications and mobile games.
- All About That PSP Phone Again...
It has been rumoured for years, but this time it seems Sony is the one starting to talk about the possibilities of a real mobile phone based on Sony's Playstation or PSP brand.
- BitTorrent Comes to iPhoneOS
Following unsupported App Stores like Cydia, Icy and Appulous, another way to download (illegal) apps and games will be available to jailbreaked iPhone owners. Developers have created an App Store based on BitTorrent.
- Palm Doubles WebOS Developer Network - UPDATED
Last Friday, the folks at Palm announced that the company has sent out a fresh batch of invitations to developers world-wide that signed up for their developer network and Mojo SDK.
- Palm Pre Triggers 1 Million Downloads
During Palms latest earnings call, freshly appointed CEO Jon Rubinstein announced that Palm Pre owners generated 1 million downloads from their App Store, even though the portfolio is not beefed up yet.
- Apple Allows Adult, First Title Pulled off
Yesterday market the start of a new market for Apple. By introducing parental controls, the company is finally opening up the App Store to mobile adult entertainment.
- EA Mobile Licenses Several Movie Brands
EA Mobile had a shopping spree at the Hollywood Studios as they picked up a nice number of big movie licenses ranging from the next Harry Potter to the upcoming G.I.-Joe movie.
- AdMob's May Metrics
For this months metrics report, AdMob has set it's focus on the distribution and usage of their iPhone portfolio. The company has been digging up many interesting facts.
- Experts on the Future of Mobile Games Distribution
The Multimedia Research Consultancy has released a new report. This time, the survey held amongst a mix of industry executives outlined the future of mobile game distribution and adoption of Social Networks.
- Bethesda Softworks / ZeniMax Acquires id Software
Developer of the Fallout series, Bethesda Softworks, has announced that the company has acquired id Software. Id Software is known for their Wolfenstein, Doom and Quake series which they are also bringing to the iPhone.
- Ansca Brings Flash Competitor to iPhone
Ansca, a company led by ex-Adobe vets, has launched Corona. Corona is a flash alternative that allows developers to develop mobile games and apps with the ease of Actionscript and Javascript.
- Warner Bros to Acquire Codemasters?
Following a bid of 33 Million for Midway, Warner Bros is eyeballing yet another big games publisher for an acquisition. Is Warner building their own mega games company? Could Glu be next?
- Flash 10 Goes Mobile
Coming autumn, we can expect a new Flash version to hit mobile phones. Flash 10 will no longer carry the 'Lite' name and leaps forward when you take a look at Flash Lite versioning.
- iPhone Upgrade Issues
It has been nearly a week since Apple released iPhoneOS 3.0. Since that moment, a lot of consumers have upgraded their devices, but it seems that consumers don't update their devices as fast as you might expect.
- THQ Restructures
Following the move to limit wireless development to the iPhone platform, THQ has announced to reorganize their total company structure in a way similar to that of EA.
- Glu Licenses 4 More Activision Titles
Glu has announced that it will be bringing more Activision titles to the decks. Amongst them is the popular Guitar Hero brand that was initially brought to mobile by HandsOn.
- GlobalFun Restructures - UPDATED
GlobalFun has announced their restructuring plans. The company will focus more on the publishing side of mobile games instead of actually developing them themselves.
- Ovi Poll Results
Following the Ovi launch, Nokia has polled consumers about their use of the new platform. As it turned out, half of them actually used it to download games, apps and more.
- Apple Sold 1 Million 3GS' in 3 Days
Apple has officially announced that the company managed to push 1 million iPhone 3GS devices out the door in just three days time. This while 6 million iPhone owners to date downloaded firmware 3.0.
- GameBonePro, the new iPhone Joypad
It seems our friends over at Zeemote will get some additional competition on the iPhone. Folowing the iControlPad, a company called 22Moo is now set to release their GameBonePro.
- Zeemote Extends Developer Contest
Following the launch of their developer contest at the GDC in March, Zeemote has announced that due to popular demand, the deadline to enter in the competition has been moved to July 31st.
- KongZhong Acquires Simlife
KongZhong Corporation announced that it is to acquire the entire issued share capital of Simlife International, Inc. Upon the closing of the acquisition, Simlife would become a wholly-owned subsidiary of KongZhong.
- Mobile Amusements Revives Doodlebug
Mobile Amusements has announced that the company is working on a revival of Doodlebug, a game from the Amiga/Atari ST that was created by them and published by Core Design.
- Apple Blocks C64 Emulator
Another week, another story about Apple's review policies. This time it is a C64 emulator from Manomio that was being slammed before it could reach the App Store audience.
- Palm Looking to Expand Developer Access
One of the biggest complaints from both developers and consumers about the new WebOS, before and after the Pre launch, is the fact that there are hardly any apps and mobile games available.
- IGT Acquires Million-2-1, Restructures
Following a strategic relationship of about two years between both companies, IGT has announced that it acquired Million-2-1. As a result, IGT announced restructuring plans as well.
- Edge vs. Edge - UPDATED
Some weeks ago, we had a small conversation with David Papazian as we read that his iPhone game was removed from the UK and US markets due to legal reasons.
- App Store Saturating?
On PocketGamer, a few interesting stories where launched about the App Store roadmaps of Digital Chocolate and Gameloft. Both think different on how to feed the app store, but might there be a bigger problem ahead?
- N-Gage Launched on Ovi
Nokia's N-Gage has launched it's portfolio on Nokia's Ovi portal. As of now, consumers will be offered trial versions of all the N-Gage games, which can be unlocked through in-game payments.
- Intentium Forms Subsidiary for Mobile and Console Gaming
Intentium has announced that the company will invest more in mobile and console games. It has created a new subsidiary company called Intentium Console GmbH to fulfil this task.
- AT&T Investing Millions in Gaming
AT&T is big and we all know that. Now, the company has started to invest many millions of dollars in gaming. Their aim is pc/console, IPTV and the good old mobile phone.
- Glu's Stock Climbing Fast, but Why?
Over the past few days, Glu's (GLUU) value has started to climb up again. Since June 12th, the company's shares even passed the $1 line. What is triggering this sudden climb from $0.89 five days ago to $1.5999 at the time of writing?
- Bertrand Louveau Leaves Mobile Distillery
Mobile Distillery's VP of International Business Development, Bertrand Louveau, has announced that he will be leaving the company after 3 years of service.
- Finesse Mobile Starts Consultancy
It seems Kevin Holloway from Finesse is starting yet another new service under his Finesse Mobile brand. This time, he will take his experience and start doing mobile consultancy.
- Back in the Business
Most of you will probably remember my post “Will Work for Money”. Today I can announce that I have started a new job as Business Developer over at Pixalon Studios.
- GetJar Hooks Up Virgin Mobile FR
Tomorrow, GetJar will connect the French operator Virgin Mobile to their app store like platform. The operator will allow it's customer base to access GetJar's 45.000 free mobile applications.
- Zeemote Extends Zeekey Availability
Zeemote has announced that their latest version of the Zeekey software will now be supporting new devices from Nokia, Samsung and LG.
- ngmoco Hires Simon Jeffery and Starts Plus+
ngmoco has announced that the company hired former Sega of America president and COO Simon Jeffery as Chief Publishing Officer for their new Plus+ Publishing services.
- N-Gage Starts Free Demo Promotions
Nokia's N-Gage has started yet another promotion to make mobile gamers aware of their portfolio. This latest promotion offers gamers a free game code in return for opt-in text messages.
- Moblin Accesses Android Market Too
A few weeks back we announced that Ubunto users have gained access to the Android Market. It seems Canonical isn't the only distro interested as Intel announced that Moblin will be Android enabled as well.
- Ovi Store Signs 27 Operators
Nokia's Ovi launch didn't go unnoticed by the press as well as by consumers. With visits from 152 countries, the fact that Nokia signed up for operator billing with 27 operators is welcome news.
- Nielsen: 75% of iPhone Owners Download Apps
Nielsen released some new insights into the US iPhone demographic. They calculated that 75% of about 6.4 million iPhone owners are downloading from the App Store.
- Dynamo Games Wants Premium App Store Channel
In a story about the latest and greatest from the WWDC, Brian McNicoll from Dynamo Games explained the need for a premium games channel on the app store.
- Taito Signs GameJam 2008 Winner Waterways
Taito (owned by Square Enix Holdings) has signed a deal with Dutch studio Rough Cookie to bring their GameJam 2008 award winning mobile game concept Waterways to the iPhone.
- LG's App Store and Android Plans
In a story on Reuters, LG reveals that it will be launching an App Store next month and is working on Android based handsets to launch next to their Windows Mobile offerings.
- Trixcell Brings More Magic to the Phone
Before reading this article, we took a look at a YouTube video that was sent with the press release. The video is of a mobile game/app called Spoon! and shows something we haven't seen on mobile yet; Magic!
- itsmy Games Launches
Mobile social media platform itsmy has launched a dedicated mobile games unit that will be creating browser based mobile games, or wap games.
- T-Mobile NL Leaks iPhone Hardware Details
For those reading our story on fragmentation due to the new hardware from Apple, here are more details as to what the iPhone 3GS is offering the consumers thanks to T-Mobile NL.
- ESA Wants App Store Ratings
ESA is well aware of mobile. Having planned a ratings system for mobile games before (which didn't take off as expected), the organisation now wants ratings on the App Store.
- Playlogic Heads for iPhone
Following their mobile gaming adventures with Overloaded (Xyanide), Playlogic Entertainment didn't really make any noise in mobile for some time. Now, the company is back to take it's chances at the App Store.
- WWDC: iPhone 3.0 Firmware and Apps
Together with the presentation of the new iPhone, Apple also announced that the much discussed 3.0 firmware will be available for download as of June 17th.
- WWDC: iPhone 3GS(peed) Update
Yesterday evening, Apple introduced the new iPhone 3GS to the public. In this post we go in on all the news that came out and might interest the mobile game development community.
- Developers Form App Treasures Label
Five independent iPhone developers have started up a collective mobile games label called App Treasures. With the label, they hope to strengthen their position toward big publishers moving in.
- iPhone “2009” Dutch Launch Confirmation; Fragmentation Coming?
Via a screenshot of the T-Mobile Activation System (TAS), the operator kind of confirmed a Dutch launch for 5 new iPhone 2009 models. If that is the final name is unsure for now.
- HandyGames to Stay SE Aggregator
Following the news earlier today, we contacted some people in the industry to see what impact the SonyEricsson / GetJar deal will be to current aggregators GlobalFun and HandyGames.
- SE Sticks Java onto Low End 3G Devices
SonyEricsson has announced that the company will make available Java on their entry level 3G phones that are meant for distribution in countries like China.
- Microsoft Releases Windows Mobile 6.5 SDK
I have to admit that since I installed Windows Mobile 6.5 on my HTC Touch Pro, I am finally satisfied with the platform (and actually feel like a happy WM user for the first time). Now, the company has released their 6.5 SDK.
- JavaOne: SE and GetJar Team up on App Store
It seems like SonyEricsson is about to unleash more competition on their decks as they announced a cooperation with GetJar for their own (GetJar Managed) App Store.
- Symbian Launched Developer Portal Beta
Some months ago, Symbian launched a public Beta for their development site. Though the team says it is still far from finished, the site is now in public beta stage.
- JavaOne: Verizon, Home of Brew... and Java!
Verizon's strategy has always been to provide hardware and services based on Qualcomm's Brew platform (as much as possible). During JavaOne, the company has announced that it will also start supporting Java.
- Player X to Distribute Apps Toward Orange UK
Good news for application developers. Orange UK and Player X have started to distribute mobile (lifestyle) applications towards the operator's customer base.
- Zed Acquires Temafon
Zed seems to be on a more aggressive acquisition path then expected. Nearly 2 months after their acquisition of Player X, the company now bought their second Russian company; Temafon.
- JavaOne: Alliance to Simplify Java
An alliance between Sun, Vodafone, Orange and SonyEricsson is working on a way to simplify Java development and deployment for J2me developers world-wide.
- FoneStarz Launches App Store with Vodafone Egypt
Fonestarz has signed a deal with Vodafone Egypt to manage and deliver a full blown app store like environment on the Vodafone Live! portal.
- No Java Verified obligations for Ovi
Following massive complaints, Nokia has decided that Java Verified is no longer obligated for mobile games published on Nokia’s Ovi store (which launched last week).
- Warner Bros Planned Another 40 Apps
According to a story on Variety, Warner Bros has clearly caught the iPhone fever as well. The company has already released 15 apps and will be releasing another 40 along this year.
- Microsotf’s ZuneHD, Will it Game?
Microsoft has announced their long awaited competitor for the iPod Touch; the ZuneHD. The device will be fully connected with the XBLA experience, but will it game?
- Apple Approved iLodeRunner
Remember the good old LodeRunner game from your Commodore or MSX? Thanks to Apple’s much questioned approval process, a port of the old game has been released on the App Store.
- Android Coming to Ubunto
Though Ubunto is one of the most well known Linux distributions out there, Canonical (the commercial party behind Ubunto) has announced that the Linux distribution will be upgraded to support Google’s Android apps.
- Nokia Ovi Launched
Nokia opened the doors to their Ovi Store. 50 Million consumers worldwide will now be able to pick up mobile games and applications directly from the service.
- PopCap (Bejeweled Twist) Promotion
Ever since I met the folks of PopCap games over at the CGA event in Amsterdam, their marketing activities have always been surprising me. Yesterday they surprised me again in regards to their new mobile game titled Bejeweled Twist.
- MobileAmusements Goes big on Dweebs
Dweebs was one of their hit PC games and eventually ended up in a small J2me game several years back. Now, the company has chosen to bring the furry critters back in the world of mobile gaming with a brand new iPhone title.
- The iPhone Gamer’s Bill of Rights
The folks over at Slide 2 Play have written an excellent editorial about 10 things mobile game developers should keep in mind to make sure that their mobile game will not cause frustration toward the consumer.
- Warner Bids for Midway
Good news for Midway today as Warner Bros showed interest in the company. It is offering $ 33 million to acquire various brands, studios and other assets.
- Palm Pre Launch Details
Sprint Nextel has announced to launch the highly anticipated Palm Pre next week on June 6th. Sprint will offer the Pre toward consumers on a two-year contract basis.
- Capcom Licensed Discovery Brands
Capcom has signed a deal with Discovery Communications (part of the Discovery Channel) to develop mobile games based on two of their successful shows; Cash Cab and Deadliest Catch.
- Sun Planning App Store
It seems Sun is also keen on releasing an App Store for all Java compliant devices. Where others aim at millions, Sun says it will aim for at least a billion consumers worldwide.
- Nokia and EA Mobile Start Dutch N-Gage Promotions
Since last week, Nokia is putting a lot of effort in promoting the N-Gage service to Dutch consumers. The company offers a special trail period with six of their mobile games.
- MGB Re-Design 2009 – iPhone Edition
It has been a year since we released the brownish layout, so it was time for a new one. Next to a new layout, we have also launched the MGB iPhone service with our launching partner Chillingo.
- Interview with Eberhard Schonburg, Artificial Life
Over the past months, Artificial Life has hit the media a couple of times with their licensing deals and very possitive financial status. Time for a small interview with the CEO Eberhard Schonburg.
- Will Work for Money
As you all noticed last week, I have been offline. Though I am happy to announce that we will soon launch on iPhone (working on the last bits of the code), there is also some sad news for me personally.
- Microsoft to Stimulate App Sharing
It seems the Redmond giant has another trick up its sleeve for the Windows Marketplace. Its what the company calls app sharing that should generate a viral sales effect.
- Sick IP; 7Seas Releases Swine Flu
For its latest releases, 7seas seems to lay their focus on controversial titles. Following Obama vs. McCain, the developer has now releases a game about the swine flu.
- Forrester: “The Smartphone” is Dead
Forrester Research has announced that the term Smartphone is no longer valid. All current phones are smart according to the company, though some phones seem smarter than others.
- N-Gage to ease Download Limitations?
One of the issues raised by consumers a long time ago was that they where not able to take their mobile games to their new N-Gage devices. N-Gage fixed this by introducing a license transfer service, but rumors say Nokia will even go beyond that.
- O2 Pushes Litmus Toward Consumers
O2 UK (Telefonica) has started a new PR initiative to push their App Store called Litmus toward consumers. The company is sending out thousands of e-mails.
- One Net Entertainment Raises $ 20 Million
China Techfaith Wireless Communication Technology Limited has announced that it has raised $ 20 million for their One Net Entertainment mobile gaming company.
- Qualcomm Launches App Store
Qualcom joins the App Store rally by releasing one as well. Their version of the App Store is called Plaza Retail and is sold as an add-on toi their Plaza Mobile Internet widget platform.
