Publishing

360 users leading digital trend

Research shows that 55 per cent of Xbox 360 owners downloaded at least one digital title in 2010. Market research firm EEDAR reports that this is up from 43 per cent in 2009 and outperforms rival consoles, according to GamesIndustry.biz. PS3 users that download games rose from 42 per cent …

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‘EA in better digital shape than Acti’

The founder of mobile games firm Ngmoco has said that EA is best positioned to face the transition from boxed sales to digital downloads. Neil Young – also a former EA Los Angeles executive – claimed that publishers such as Activision are doing a worse job of preparing a strong …

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EAs The Sims backs Comic Relief

Electronic Arts is set to raise thousands of pounds for Comic Relief via its best-selling The Sims franchise. The publisher will donate 1 for every Sims title sold in February and March to the charity – including the PC expansions and console versions of The Sims 3. Humour is an …

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Youve played the game, now buy the T-shirt

Clothes, accessories and fitness apparel based on the Just Dance franchise are on their way to shops. Publisher Ubisoft has signed up Copyright Promotions Licensing Group (CPLG) as its European licensing agency. The firm will handle Ubisoft’s casual range, including Just Dance, Rabbids and Imagine. The casual-focused Imagine brand – …

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$60 games are ‘exploitative’

Ben Cousins, the general manager of EA’s free-to-play division Easy Studios, has lashed out the high price business model that continues to boss the console market. I can’t think of anything more exploitative than gating all of your content behind having to pay someone $60," he told Rock Paper Shotgun. …

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Dragon Age II in DRM row

Dragon Age fans have accused Electronic Arts and BioWare of hiding controversial DRM measures in their latest release. According to anti-DRM consumer watchdog Reclaim Your Game, the recently released Dragon Age II contains the SecuROM-related Sony Release Control and have protested that the game’s developer and publisher failed to inform …

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Sledgehammer hires COD community boss

Sledgehammer Games has hired a new community manager, who will no doubt be working on the studio’s unannounced Call of Duty project. The new recruit is Guy Beahm, who previously worked as premiere director at Machinima.com. He will now be responsible for developing and managing the online community for any …

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Sony DADC champions direct-to-consumer service

One difference Sony DADC says it can offer is a direct-to-consumer postal service for small retailers. It gives indies – who may be low on stock or tight for space – the option of ordering a product from Sony DADC and getting it delivered to their customer’s door. If somebody …

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