Gamesindustry.biz reports: “If one trend has defined the recent history of the games business, it’s the emergence of the battle royale. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite achieved startling levels of success and popularity that are all the more remarkable considering where the genre came from: a series of mods created by one person with a limited grasp of the technical side of game development.”
The Verge reports: “France’s competition authority, the Autorité de la Concurrence, has fined Apple €1.1 billion (around $1.2 billion) for illegally restricting how wholesalers sell Apple products. As well as fining Apple itself, the authority has also fined two of its wholesalers, Tech Data, and Ingram Micro, Reuters reports.”
Variety reports: “AMC Networks wants to sell the ads that accompany “Walking Dead” on its flagship cable outlet and wherever the series’ zombies might march.”
The Hollywood Reporter reports: “With stock markets battered by the coronavirus, and shares of entertainment giants hit hard, some on Wall Street have started wondering if cash-rich technology powerhouses could consider takeover offers for Hollywood companies.”
Deadline reports: “OTT platform Future Today said Monday it’s merger agreement with Cinedigm has been terminated and it’s entered into a content licensing arrangement with the company instead to extend its content offering.”
TechCrunch reports: “Remote collaboration tools like Zoom are gathering massive amounts of attention as people begin working from home en masse. But, as with most trends, virtual reality seems to be sitting out this boom.”
TechCrunch reports: “The JEDI contract award process might never be done. Following legal challenges from Amazon after the Pentagon’s massive, $10 billion cloud contract was awarded to Microsoft in October, the Pentagon indicated in court documents last night that it wishes to reconsider the award.”
The Verge reports: “Nintendo has come out triumphant in a patent dispute with hardware developer Gamevice, which initially sued Nintendo for allegedly infringing on a patent for its gaming device, the Wikipad.”
Billboard reports: “Warner Records has brought in music business veteran Stefan Max for the role of senior vice president of A&R, the label announced on Friday. Max is a 10-year WMG veteran, having joined Warner’s Roadrunner Records in 2010 as director of A&R before making his way to Atlantic two years later as vp of A&R.”
Variety reports: “Apple Music has inked new, multi-year licenses with the three major music companies — Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group — in recent months, according to the Financial Times, although the deals do not extend to the company’s planned bundles with Apple TV or Apple Arcade.”
