The Verge reports: “Broadcom is acquiring VMware in a $61 billion cash-and-stock deal. It’s one of the biggest tech acquisitions ever, behind Dell’s $67 billion EMC deal and Microsoft’s pending acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion. Broadcom is known for its chip business, designing and manufacturing semiconductors for modems, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth chips across multiple devices.”
Games Industry reports: “Worldwide consumer spending on video games is set to reach a new record this year, according to a new report from Data.ai (formerly App Annie) compiled with International Data Corporation.”
Hollywood Reporter reports: “New games company MetaKing Studios has raised $15 million in seed funding, led by Makers Fund and BITKRAFT, to accelerate development of Blocklords, a multiplayer medieval strategy MMO game built using Web3 technology.”
Variety reports: “The popular “Exploding Kittens” card game is coming to the streamer’s mobile apps starting May 31. It’s the latest in a string of more than a dozen games Netflix has introduced since last fall, but so far it’s too early to tell whether the titles — available for no additional charge — are helping to attract and retain customers in the way the company theorizes.”
CNBC reports: “Andreessen Horowitz plans to plow billions of dollars into crypto start-ups while digital asset markets are in a rut. The Silicon Valley firm announced a new $4.5 billion fund for backing crypto and blockchain companies on Wednesday. It marks Andreessen’s fourth fund for the asset class and brings its total raised for crypto and blockchain investments to $7.6 billion.”
VentureBeat reports: “WSO2, the company behind an open-source enterprise platform for integrating APIs (application programming interfaces), has closed out its series E round of funding at $93 million.”
SocialMediaToday reports: “Google has announced a range of new ad tools at its Google Marketing Live event, including new opportunities to advertise within YouTube Shorts, new layouts for Responsive Display Ads, improved analytics, new ad testing options, and more.”
The Verge reports: “While we still don’t know exactly what 2K will do with its “non-simulation” NFL license (its arcade-style game is delayed and won’t be released this year), the league is filling that void by announcing a partnership to build its first blockchain game, NFL Rivals.”
Engadget reports: “Google has shown off an artificial intelligence system that can create images based on text input. The idea is that users can enter any descriptive text and the AI will turn that into an image.”
Music Business Worldwide reports: “The company has today taken the wraps off a new NFT-gated project called the Venice Music Collective. Amongst the perks on offer for artists accepted into this Collective? Access to a new physical space in Los Angeles called Venice House, which includes recording studios and a pool – and is claimed to offer “the creative spirit of Laurel Canyon into the modern-day era”.”
