London – Mobile music identification service Shazam is now
adding one million new users every week, the company said in announcing its
tenth anniversary. Shazam says it hopes to count 100 million registered users
by the end of the year.
Related Links:
http://www.shazam.com
Los Angeles – Qtrax, the ad-supported music download service
that has experienced a number of launch delays, has named Lance J.O. Ford as
co-president and chief marketing officer. Ford was previously an adviser at Rebel Digital. Qtrax says
it is now in beta testing in the Asia-Pacific region, and plans to launch in
several other foreign countries — but did not mention a U.S. launch.
Related Links:
http://www.qtrax.com
Port Washington, N.Y. – One in five Americans, or some 56.8
million consumers, has played a game on a social network in the past three
months, according to a report from market research firm NPD Group.
The report
found that 35% of social network gamers are entirely new to gaming, with females
and older age groups more likely to be new gamers than other demographics.
Despite perceptions that social gamers are primarily female, the study found a
fairly even division, with 53% female and 47% male.
Some 10% of social network
gamers have spent real money playing games, and 11% say they’d do so in the
future.
"Although 35 percent of social network gamers are new to gaming,
it’s clear that a lot of existing gamers have been drawn into the social
network gaming arena as well," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier.
"This
impacts both the time they spend with other types of gaming, as well as the
amount of money they’re spending on gaming. As more players are drawn into
these games, the entire games industry is going to feel, and have to adjust to,
the impact."
Related Links:
http://www.npd.com
Boston – The number of people watching broadcast TV online
has doubled in the past year, according to a new survey by Altman Vilandrie
& Company and Peanut Labs.
The online survey of 1,000 found age to be a
determining factor in online TV viewing, as 16% of 18-34 year-olds reported
watching full TV episodes on the Internet daily, compared with 6% of those over
35.
While only 3% of 18-34 year-olds said they have cancelled cable TV service
in favor of online offerings, 25% say they have "seriously considered"
it.
Mobile video viewing is also up among 18-34 year-olds, as 13% said they
watch video on a mobile phone daily, up from 5% in 2009.
"While the study
shows the rumblings of seismic shift in consumer video preferences, there are
clear opportunities for cable and satellite providers to differentiate versus
online video alternatives," said Altman Vilandrie & Company director
Jonathan Hurd.
"Providers that can be nimble in adopting mobile video, 3D
and other innovations will stem potential defections, especially among younger
consumers."
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/2dwuvo2
San Francisco – Apple (NASD: AAPL) has applied for a patent on technology
that could be used to kill iPhones that have been "jailbroken" so
they can run unauthorized software, CNET News.com reported.
News of the patent
application, which was filed in early 2009 and published last week, comes after
the U.S. Copyright Office deemed jailbreaking to be legal.
The technology
described in the proposed "Systems and Methods for Identifying Unauthorized
Users of an Electronic Device" patent can identify activities such as
"hacking, jailbreaking, unlocking, or removal of a SIM card," and
take actions such as geotag the device’s location, or snap a photo of its
surroundings and current user.
If an unauthorized user is identified, "access
to particular applications can be restricted, access to sensitive information
can be restricted, [and] sensitive information can be erased from the
electronic device," the patent application states.
Related Links:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20014356-37.html
http://tinyurl.com/28wuo2g
(DMW previous coverage)
Redwood City, Calif. – Video game publisher Electronic Arts (NASD: ERTS)
is taking flak for a feature in the next installment of its popular
"Medal of Honor" franchise that lets players assume the role of
Taliban fighters in Afghanistan. British defense secretary Liam Fox called the
game a "tasteless product," according to the Associated Press. "It’s
shocking that someone would think it acceptable to recreate the acts of the
Taliban against British soldiers," said Fox.
"I would urge retailers
to show their support for our armed forces and ban this tasteless
product."
The mother of a fallen soldier called the game
"disrespectful" during a segment on the Fox News Channel.
"We
give gamers the opportunity to play both sides. Most of us have been doing this
since we were seven: someone plays cop, someone must be robber," EA
spokeswoman Amanda Taggart told the Sunday Times.
"In Medal of Honor
multiplayer, someone’s got to be the Taliban. Nobody who plays video games is
going to be shocked or surprised by this."
Previous iterations allowed
gamers to play on either side of the conflict in World War II.
The new version
is slated for release in October.
Poll
Is EA receiving too much "flak" for the Taliban role in their new "Medal of Honor" game?
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3yph3g5
(AP)
http://tinyurl.com/33arahx
(TechCrunch)
Mountain View, Calif. – Google (NASD: GOOG) has acquired comparison
shopping site Like.com, in a deal sources told TechCrunch values the company at
around $100 million. Founded in 2006 and formerly known as Riya, Like.com has to date raised over $50
million in financing, from backers including Menlo Ventures, Crosslink Capital,
BlueRun Ventures, Leapfrog Ventures and Bay Partners.
Like.com offers an image search engine that can identify a
product and allow users to search for similar items across the Web, for
purposes of comparing prices.
"We were the first to bring visual search to
shopping, the first to build an automated cross-matching system for clothing,
and more," Like.com CEO Munjal Shah wrote in a note on the company’s
site.
"We see joining Google as a way to supersize our vision and
supercharge our passion."
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/2waggl5
(TechCrunch)
