Mobile gaming still eludes a troubled industry

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – To get a sense of how investors view the promise of mobile gaming, one need look no further than Japan’s GungHo Online Entertainment. With just one game under its belt, its stock has risen tenfold since October and its market cap almost equals that of decades-old Nintendo.

From veterans like Electronic Arts to rising stars such as “Clash of Clans” maker Supercell, the $66 billion video game industry is scrambling to devise games and experimenting with ways to appeal to a generation of players that spends more time on mobile devices than on computers or consoles.

Most are having scant success in an industry peppered with one-hit wonders like OMGPOP and where even established players like Zynga are faltering, industry sources say.

“It’s sort of like all the chess pieces have been thrown in the air, and the industry has not yet landed on what the chess board looks like,” said Owen Mahoney, CFO of Japanese online gaming giant Nexon Co Ltd, which has in the past year bought two companies to accelerate its mobile foray.

In recent years, the model has been to offer games for free, then encourage players to spend real money on in-game purchases – a system perfected by Zynga in its online games. But its rapid decline in just the past year illustrates the challenge of hooking new players, and loosening gamers’ purse strings.

The company that shot to fame on the back of Facebook games like “Farmville” bought OMGPOP, developers of the mobile sensation “Draw Something” – for $180 million. After months of losing users that once peaked to 14.5 million players over a year ago, Zynga last week shut its New York-based studio, effectively laying off the OMGPOP team.

Industry executives say mobile gamers today are spoiled for choice as the industry has exploded. In 2007, when Apple Inc launched the iPhone, there were but a handful of developers. Today, there are hundreds, whose apps sell across the globe on Apple and Google Inc’s Android devices.

“You see these rocket ships in the industry that explode on the scene with a casual game that’s easy to develop with not much money and they gain users quickly. But users get bored or angry because they can’t progress without paying more money,” Nexon’s Mahoney told Reuters in an interview.

Nexon has had some success boosting its mobile portfolio, a likely factor behind revenue growth of 24 percent in 2012 to 108 million yen ($1.1 million).

LOOKING FOR ANSWERS

To stand out from the crowd, developers big and small are seeking ways to build a sustainable business.

EA, as one of the best-funded competitors, is turning to data analytics to keep track of its players’ gaming patterns and behavior.

Japanese gaming giant DeNA is experimenting with on-the-spot tweaks to its games by employees, who adjust conditions depending on what players do, CEO of DeNA West Clive Downie said.

Canadian indie studio Noodlecake, known for games like “Zombie Road Trip”, is employing loyalty programs similar to airlines with daily virtual currency rewards for first-time and frequent players.

Others resort to tricks like seasonal deals and holiday-themed content to boost their rankings on app-download charts during the crucial holiday period.

Up-and-coming GungHo, which has seen its shares rise tenfold since October as investors bet on its ability to rise above the fray with its sole title “Puzzle & Dragons,” is turning to costly TV advertising to place its brand front-and-center.

Japanese telecoms giant Softbank Corp owns a majority stake in GungHo.

Even Rovio – backers of pop-culture phenomenon “Angry Birds” – has reported that it now leans on stuffed toys, mugs and other merchandise for 45 percent of its revenue.

“Everybody wants a manual” with the best user acquisition techniques, said Doug Smith, an independent developer who launched his kids game “Chugga Bugga” on the Apple App Store in early April but has had only about 3,500 downloads. He is disappointed that it’s becoming “harder and harder for new entrants to come in without a big budget.”

GOLD RUSH

As E3, the industry’s largest annual convention, kicks off in Los Angeles next week, console games going up against mobile games will be an underlying theme.

Revenue from games on mobile and portable devices is expected to grow about 38 percent to $8 billion in 2013 and touch $20 billion in 2018, according to David Cole, an analyst at research group DFC Intelligence. That’s why mobile developers won’t give up.

Game publishers are now rushing to hire people with data science and analytics skills dedicated to acquiring users and analyzing their behavior, said Ville Heijari, European general manager for PlayHaven, which helps developers monetize and market games.

EA has made investments in data analytics to build a suite of back-end proprietary software to break down its players by region and preferences, to help development of future games, said EA’s President of Labels Frank Gibeau.

For now, consumer spending remains concentrated on the decades-old console gaming industry. But the situation is fast changing: in just a few years, mobile gaming has grown to account for about 9 percent of overall revenue.

Mobile is “an absolutely critical, if not ‘the’ growth driver for the industry for the next several years,” Gibeau said.

Despite the success of a number of companies, “a lot of the industry is still in a learning phase,” PlayHaven’s Heijari said.

(Editing by Ben Berkowitz, Edwin Chan and Lisa Shumaker)

5 Of The Best mp3 Players

The modern mobile phone is a wondrous item that can perform many different tasks. It can be expanded with the addition of various apps and it allows for gaming, watching TV, taking photos, and consuming media in various formats. However, for some of us, the lure of a dedicated mp3 player still remains. Fortunately, as well as the various Apple devices out there, there are a number of high quality items produced by some well-known companies.

Before moving on to iPod Touch alternatives, we should cover Apple’s marketing leading device. The fifth generation iPod is a powerful and even good looking device that offers everything the iPhone 5 offers except the mobile phone. It is expensive, at around £200 but it can be used for apps and for many other functions besides listening to music. The iPod Touch 4th generation is still available, costing about £150, and while not as advanced as its replacement, it is still a very good quality device worth investing in.

The Philips GoGear Connect 3 has 8GB of storage and it runs Android. The touchscreen isn’t as impressive as the iPod but at £50 the Connect is considerably cheaper than its Apple rival. It also offers noise cancelling earphones that further improve the quality of the sound; sound that is already enhanced by Philips FullSound technology. During the mp3 compression process, some of the audio is lost and this technology helps to fill in the void, as it were, and to ensure that you get the best quality audio possible without having to pack mp3 players with cumbersome and bloated file types.

In the same way that the iPod is basically an iPhone without the phone functionality, the Samsung Galaxy S WiFi is a Galaxy S without the mobile phone capabilities. It too runs Android and it has a 4.2 inch display and an impressive 1GHz processor. It is light and it features a 2mp rear facing camera as well as a front facing VGA camera that makes video calling possible and effective. Costing around £150 for 8GB this is a great quality device that looks and sounds great.

Walkman is a name that will bring tears to the eyes of the nostalgic among us. Sony has released a number of mp3 players under this popular and well known marque including the moderately priced but dourly named NWZ F805B. This 16GB touch screen device runs Android and offers a variety of technologies and features that make it a good alternative. Ideal for the nostalgia lover although it is a lot smaller than the original Walkman.

Whether you’re operating on a tight budget or you want something that you can take to the gym without being overly concerned about cost, the Sandisk Sansa Clip+ is ideal. Costing less than £30 it has a small screen and the build quality isn’t as good as the more expensive alternatives but did we mentioned that it’s available for less than £30? Oh, and the 8GB memory can be expanded with microSD or microSDHC cards.

The Rise and Rise of Smartphone Telephone Models

Over recent years, we’ve seen a massive rise in the popularity of smartphone models. Telephone models used to be very basic with the capacity to talk, text and perhaps take a few decent quality snaps. However, these days our phones are computers in our pockets. We’ve seen a massive rise in popularity, and we’ve seen a massive rise in diversity.

In this article, we’ll take a look at where we are in the smartphone market so that you can understand how good the performance is in terms of the processing power, the cameras, the memory storage and the operating systems.

The processing power of modern telephone models

Many years ago, telephone models had extremely limited processing power. Nowadays, we’ve got as much power on some of our telephone models as there is on a computer. In our hands these days, we have more processing power than it took to get the first spacecraft to the moon.

Advanced Features Of Accessories For New Apple iPhone5

The iPhone 5 is a fully advanced form of touchscreen-based Smartphone produced by Apple Corporation. It is the 6th G of the iPhone and do well the iPhone 4S. The technology made it so slimmer; lighter in weight that produces a high-sensitivity, 4-inch screen. The phone also contained a uniquely-designed Apple A6 processor and IOS 6 operating system is inbuilt.

Apple accessories got publicity when it was first time introduced on sept 12, 2012 and get orders gradually on sept 14, 2012 and got over two million within one day, release in the US, Japan, Britain, Germany, France and four other countries.  On the inside, among Apple accessories this is a newest touch screen Smartphone, the iPhone 5, collection of bounty of improvements, contain- a quicker A6 processor with better graphics and battery presentation, faster local area connectivity, which sum up new scores in the software world. But, the iPhone looks different from outside.

Another improvement in Apple Accessories:

The iPhone’s back body is made up of fully aluminum whether a single thin sheet of transparent glass, as it was on the iPhone 4 or 4S. This makes the new pattern of design more strong, it also makes a protective case which conveniently essentially to make uses this technology. Now a day you can get the cheapest case for your Smartphone. It does a little bit spend over your Smartphone to keep in good condition.

 Apple’s design gives new essential accessories including iPhone cases, made particularly for the iPhone 5. And we can use new quality cases which are suitable for our iPhone to protect from external radiation, dust, and make waterproof and increase its functionality.

Apple accessories also has prepared the iPhone 5 with an advanced sound system, quality of the new headphones  improve to make it better than others, company takes three years for its developer. These headphones, called “EarPods,” are a discrete change on the ear sprouts that Apple wish to give more advanced functions by which consumers got lots of benefits after buy these EarPodes. These headphones actually give a sonic voice in your ears and you feel like it is playing in your head. You have not spent on these earpodes because it is free with these advanced iPhone 5.

The new iPhone operating system, iOS 6, also gives another amusing application that makes it simple to send photos with your close friends and family. Rather choose a particular picture, or even galleries of photos, and then send them through email to whomever you wish to share. Make sure that the receiver also has any Apple Accessories by which running on iOS 6, the receiver gets notification after sent by his or her friends’ particular picture or important document from iPod or iPhone.  It is not necessary for recipient have iPhone 5 because the new operating system (iOS6) can be downloaded for free on huge models of older Apple devices, containing the three older series on the iPhone and the previous two series of the iPad.

The new operating system iOS also provide an attribute called “Passbook,” where digital coupons, airline tickets and gift cards can be suitably stored in one place. This, application, is going to be well-liked. Yet, Passbook would be an even handier device if the iPhone 5 possesses a near-field messaging chip to work as wireless payments at the depart stands prepared for the prepaid technology. Some producers introduce Google’s Android software in his smart phones enable to possess the transaction mode payment facility because it contained an NFC chip.

The Rise of Illegal Online Gambling

Bitcoins, the “Shallow Web” and Illicit Services

Bitcoin.org is one of several sites that offer a cyber-currency. Just as with normal money we are seeing some misuse of this. Illegal betting is a common use as well as use for the purchase of some illicit items on what could be termed the “Shallow Web.” Things like private networks, Tor and other sites not on the core web. These are a bit above the highly-encrypted sectors of the deep web but still have some illicit activity. Many times these online activities go hand-in-hand as they would in real life.

The Dogs Watching the Foxes

However illegal gambling sites have unexpected oversight from an interesting source: legal gambling sites. Just as with legal casinos the guys who have their licenses and taxes don’t like having their toes stepped on by illegal sites and take every opportunity to ferret them out or celebrate their demise. This is an unexpected positive side effect of the industry.

We Already Know the Future

What is clearly going to happen is that gambling sites, apps and risks are going to grow. Both legal and illegal sites will spring up. You just have to do all you can to protect yourself and information.

 

Big Money and Big Tech

The final bit of good news is this, big business also cares. Visa for example tracks the differences between legal and illegal betting and they care very much where their funds are going. They use extensive databases and records of transactions on powerful servers to do this. Technology is on the side of the right here but only time will tell if it will be enough.

 

Apple Rethinks the iPhone Design

Apple is rethinking the design of its most popular product, the iPhone. It is planning to launch iPhones with bigger screens, specifically between 4.7 and 5.7 inches. Though there have been no official announcements from the company regarding this, the rumors have started to spread that Apple may also offer colored ranges of the product for lower prices. According to Reuters, Apple might be launching the new iPhone range early next year.

This clearly indicates that the company is trying to regain its position in the market. The iPhone is getting tough competition from the large screen and feature loaded Android phones, and is losing its market rapidly. With the launch of iPhone 5 in September 2012, Apple tried to change the trend that the phone has been following since it was introduced for the first time, by introducing a larger 4 inch screen. All the previous models had had a 3.5 inch screen size.

When asked about large screens at the “All Things D conference” last month, Tim Crook, the Apple CEO, answered that there are several features that need to be considered before the screen size can be increased. The manufacturer needs to ensure that the photos show proper color, the white balance, reflectivity, a good battery life, brightness and above all, long life of the display.

At some point, though not in the near future, Apple is planning to launch a cheaper range of the phone. The cheaper phone may cost as little as $99 and would be encased in a plastic body. The cheaper range of phone would offer different color options as well as the typical native black or white colored phones.

What’s next in the native iPhone series?

Every year Apple has been releasing a new version of its mobile operating system, popularly known as iOS, along with a new phone to accompany it. Last week the company released the developer preview of the long-awaited operating system, the iOS 7. Though Apple has not yet announced the name of the new hardware that will be launched with the forthcoming software, there are strong rumors floating around that it will be iPhone 5s. It is also believed that the 5s model will follow the same design and would not incorporate a drastic change in the design or features from its predecessor.

Apple is ready to launch iOS 7 before the end of this year. This clearly indicates that we might get the next model of the iPhone before 2013 comes to an end. Though, from past trends, it is clear that the new operating system will step into the market long before the hardware is announced.

What questions to ask your iPhone application developer

Hiring an iPhone application developer is both an exciting and daunting task. Even if you thoroughly browse through their portfolio of Apple iPhone Apps, you can never be certain they will be the perfect match for you. There are a few things you should make sure that you ask your iPhone application developer before you get started, to ensure you’re on the same page about everything. Asking a few questions before you start can save you a world of hassles.

What happens if things take more time than expected?

Who covers the costs here? You need to ask your iPhone application developer, in the case of underestimating your iPhone app development task, who covers the difference? Some companies will expect you to pay for any additional time that goes over budget. Other companies will absorb the cost themselves. It’s important that you see eye-to-eye with your iPhone application developer in case this situation becomes a reality.

What’s the latest date things will be deliver?

The general rule in business is to under promise and over deliver. If your iPhone application developer says your project will take a month, make sure they give you an absolute latest date the app will be finished. It’s important to establish a clear deadline so that you can know when to expect your product. There’s nothing worse than creating a lot of hype around the release of a product, only to have the product come around a few days – or weeks – short.

What happens if you do not like their final product?

Generally, during App development you will be involved throughout the process so nothing will come as a shock to you at the end of things. However, some iPhone application developer companies prefer to discuss things and get to work sorting out the final product, so you can see it as soon as possible. If you’re not happy with the final product, will they make amendments? What’s the cut off? At the end of the day, you need an App you’re happy with and proud to put your brand name next to, so make sure your iPhone app development company are committed to taking you to that point.

Once you’ve asked your potential iPhone app development companies these question, you’ll get a better idea of which one is going to offer the best value and get you as close to your vision as possible.

Is there anything else you think is essential for asking an iPhone app development company before working with them?

VoX Sends Its iPhone Mobile Video and VoIP App to Apple Store for Approval

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Pervasip Corp.’s (OTCQB: PVSP) wholly-owned subsidiary, Vox Communications, a cloud-based voice and video communications solutions, apps and services provider, has submitted its highly anticipated mobile VoIP and video calling application to Apple to be included in the Apple iTunes digital store.

“We have also enabled both our Android and iPhone apps to be ‘topped up’ – using our newly launched VoX mobile calling cards. We intend to release both iPhone and Android specific top up cards in the coming weeks to the retail stores.”

VoX’s Chief Information Officer, Mark Richards, noted, “We are very excited to submit our iPhone app to be placed into Apple’s iTunes store. We have taken the time to develop what we think is the leading, most functional mobile voice and video application in the store. We like the advantage that our app brings in that even though Facetime is a great application, you are unable to place a video call to a person who is running the world’s most popular operating system, Google’s Android. With the VoX App, you can call video to video in a cross platform environment, you do not need to know if the other person has an iPhone or an Android phone. We believe this component gives our app a distinct advantage. We hope to have approval from Apple within the next week so that it will be it available in the iTunes digital store to approximately 500 million global subscribers.”

Similar to the Android App, when the iPhone app is approved, a user will be able to subscribe entirely on an iPhone or iPad and choose a U.S. phone number without leaving the interface, which makes the sign up process more elegant than many competitors. The mobile VoIP paid plans are a low cost of entry for a high quality and reliable mobile VoIP service offering. New subscribers will be allowed to download the app for a free 60 minute trial and make calls to any country on the unlimited calling list, or sign up for the “Pay And Go” plan for as little as one dollar, literally a “pay as you go” plan with no monthly subscription fees.

“We fully expect iPhone users will experience the high quality levels that we have achieved with our Android app, which is highly ranked in the both the Google Play Store and Samsung App Store,” continued Richards. “We have also enabled both our Android and iPhone apps to be ‘topped up’ – using our newly launched VoX mobile calling cards. We intend to release both iPhone and Android specific top up cards in the coming weeks to the retail stores.”

About VoX Communications:

VoX Communications delivers VoIP and video telephone service anywhere in the world that has a stable broadband connection. It recently entered the mobile VoIP services and applications arena so that its VoIP can utilize any 3G/4G or WiFi connection. VoX differentiates itself through a unique combination of high quality voice services, flexible back-office capabilities and automated provisioning systems that enable a quick turn-up for app users who are looking for a second mobile phone line or low-cost international calling, without using any voice-plan minutes from their mobile phone carrier. It offers a feature-rich, low-cost, high-quality alternative to traditional wireless phone services. For more information, please visit www.voxcorp.net.

Forward-looking statements: The information contained herein includes forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or to our future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond our control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects our current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to our operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. We assume no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

Sony Xperia Z Review

Sony is back with its biggest and best smartphone ever made, Sony Xperia Z. Even though similar to iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S3, this smartphone has all features of a powerful machine. Officially launched on February 13 of this year, the “Z” has big mark 4.6 out of 5. It has new specifications that make everyone dreams about them.

Let’s start with the design. The logo Sony is in the center, as is on every other phone, and here is the front-facing camera. The back has som e tech info, Sony Xperia logo, c amera light and all lenses . Just turn on and let the party begin! Sony Xperia Z has 5-inches 1080p sharp screen, but we have to say that it’s not good as HTC One’s LCD 3 screen. However, it goes toe-to-toe with the Galaxy S4’s display. One bad feature is that it is made of glass, which makes your phone dirty all the time. It has fingerprints everywhere! But you can put it silver foils in the front and in the back of the phone. The 7.9 mm thickness makes the smart phone very handsome.

The Japanizes took a while to get to here, but they made a perfect processor. Inside of the thin box is 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro chip matched with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. It is one of the best smartphone that Sony has ever produced! It camera is 13.1 megapixels which produces powerful photo s, enabling lush shots regarding lighting conditions. The cameraman’s must have it! The phone is backed up with Android 4.1 which can be updated anytime.

Despite all the applications and interesting games that Android system enables, Sony Xperia Z has NFC, which allows the Sony users to communicate each other, by simple touch. It is ready for the future!

The “Z” is water and dust resistant. You can put it in water for 30 min and you can perfectly handle. Unfortunately, the 2330mAh Lithium-Ion battery is no replacing. It is once-life-time. But if you control it good, you wouldn’t have to replace it. And believe me this smart phone is must-have tool!