A WORD OF CAUTION ON SOCIAL GAMING

So whats the hot topic this month? is it iphone may be its social gaming or may be social gaming on mobiles or may be its virtual items and micro-transactions
no wait its .......

STOP STOP STOP..........the phrase "knee jerk reaction" comes to mind so often and it will be the downfall of many and also it causes the industry problems and confuses people.

Stay focused! and whatever you do or whatever decisions you make make sure you know why your doing them and and how you will execute. (sounds obvious right!)

Its important to develop a long term strategy around your product and don't try to make it fit a particular platform that's currently popular because may be its just not suited. Do you even know your audience and how you will monetize.

I have even heard developers saying how can I make my studio in to a Social gaming studio or we have to do FB games etc..... one company even went from being a SN developer to iphone and back to SN's in a short space of time. Social gaming may be an additional channel but "all eggs one basket" comes to mind.

CURRENT TOP 5 SOCIAL GAMES (Across social networks)



TOP 3 SELLING iPHONE GAMES IN FEB 09
Flight controller, pocket GOD and Zombieville USA









iphone, micro-transactions and Social gaming can all be big business but many companies are putting out products and completely missing the point. My advice would be talk to people in the know work in partnerships and don't be afraid to ask around help is there.

Also SN's are going through a curve and a transition in gaming, the content is getting better, technology improving (flash announcement) people getting into the deeper experience communities developing within communities etc...the new version of FB is more like twitter for updates and a lot of games push message updates so at some point people will consolidate so make sure you talk to the right people get some advice and learn from others mistakes.

But don't believe your own hype you may only get one shot.

Some useful resources for help and advice

www.sharkjumping.com lokipartners.com
www.worldsandgames.com
www.millionsofus.com
www.srpoints.com
www.twofish.com

PARTNERSHIPS: Microsoft & Myspace

Two Microsoft-related announcements coming from social networking giant MySpace today:

the portal is adding support for Windows Mobile-run phones to its new mobile application, due this summer, and bringing the Silverlight runtime to its developer program thanks to a jointly developed Open Source kit.

The upcoming application will be created by MySpace in conjunction with Microsoft developers, and optimize the user experience for owners of devices running the latest version of Windows Mobile (6.1, which was introduced in April 2008). The company says it currently has 20 million mobile users and is focused on developing applications for all platforms, including the iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Palm, Nokia, etc. As MobileCrunch reported earlier this year, MySpace anticipates 50% of their total traffic to come from mobiles within the next few years, which is why it has recently launched a redesigned mobile website as well.



read more

BUSINESS: Stardoll & Pizco Merge

Key Points

Deal includes cash and stock
Pizco CEO leaves and Pizco to be mainly run by Stardoll
The Aim is to create a larger network with multiple brands and try to follow the strategy of Viacom
New brand Paperdoll Heaven will be launched
They claim they will now reach over 20 million unique per month
U.S. Venture Partners and Mangrove Capital Partners get exit from the deal They invested 11 million into PIZCO

It looks a bit more like a take over, and Stardoll will be taking advantage of the technology PIZCO have built, but reports have noted that PIZCO's numbers have been falling away in the UK and Stardolls number have fell away in the U.S so there is going to be a need for change and The Buzz around the deal may create new interest, also why not keep your existing Stardoll customers if they want to be part of another social network it will be easier for them to join and share especially if they allow one password similar to Yahoo or Google ID.

Read more here (media post)

AND more here (Guardian)

CHARTS: HOT SOCNET APPS

In my aim to bring all the key industry stats and info I am adding a regular Social networks application Chart starting now. Key thing there are several games in the list.

Its based on the Facebook, Bebo, Myspace and Hi5

5 tit bits to digest

New Bejeweled coming soon

Entitled Bejeweled Twist, the new game has been in development for more than three years and the firm claims it ‘will bring a completely new perspective to the “Match-3” genre of puzzle games that the original Bejeweled pioneered eight years ago’."

Oberon gets 20 million
Credit crunch? What credit crunch? Wall Street worries aren't stemming the flow of cash into the games industry - I-Play onwer Oberon Media has just scored a $20m boost from a Chinese investor.

Warren Spector goes CASUAL
Deus Ex creator Warren Spector has unveiled the first details of his new project – and risked shocking his hardcore fanbase by revealing that it’s a family-friendly title.

Spector, creative director of Junction Point Studios for Disney, said that hardcore gamers “would be up in arms” when they heard news of project – but added that the hardcore market is “completely safe”.

Spore was designed for Casual gamers (oh shock really)
Will Wright has admitted that he designed Spore with purely casual gamers in mind – and that ‘hardcore’ players didn’t even get a look-in during testing.

Speaking to Forbes (via MCV), Wright said that he deliberately avoided targeting core gamers with the title, which has sold over a million copies since release last month.

Playfish hit big on Facebook
Just a year after its founding, London-based studio Playfish has stormed the Facebook charts to produce four of the top 12 games on the site ­– and says its success proves studios can make money developing games for social networks.

Playfish is responsible for five games on Facebook – Who Has The Biggest Brain?, Bowling Buddies, Geo Challenge, Pet Society and and Word Challenge – and has over 20m registered users, 1.5m of which play in any given day

Twist could make top 5.

Everyone will want to play new bejeweled and if it has a good twist it should see top 5. I actually did a prototype for a game called twist n turn which was a match 3 with a twist so It will be interesting to see what their twist is. My guess is that they have added another dimension to the game mechanic. I can think of several they could adopt so its quite exciting.

MySpace launches Music site

MySpace Music launch
Social network is direct rival to i-Tunes
25 September 2008 - MySpace has today unveiled MySpace Music, artists can now make money, through Amazon, directly from downloads from their MySpace site.

Along with its joint venture partners which include SonyBMG, Universal, Warners, SonyATV/Music Publishing and The Orchard for independent digital music and EMI, who signed late yesterday, MySpace Music aims to give their massive community of musicians and artists a chance to make money.

Indies not happy as they have been left out, may be not the best way to handel this considering that the myspace has most definitely been helped by the presence of indie bands on network. I think they will do a deal but they should have sorted one prior to launching.

I also hear that they will offer variable prcing on MP3's somthing that I-tunes has refused to do. Its all an effort to get people to buy more music in stead of stealing it which can only be a good thing.

I think it also paves the way for the record industry to look to partner with more gaming destinations to leverage sales, in the likes of Habbo Hotel and other virtual worlds. Motor Head have just launched themselves into a virtual world. However I think it will be most successful when its in context with the game. A little bit like in game adverts, if you present music within context of the game and then offer the up sell to buy that music people are more likely to convert.

What more does it offer?

The MyMusic toolset allows users in the US to download, stream, and personalize their music content. Music fans can create both personal and public playlists and profile display, allowing friends to stream all playlisted content on-demand and purchase MP3s of their favourite songs. Users can virally add a friend's playlist to their own profile or take songs from a friend's profile to their own.

Beginning today, US users can purchase DRM-free MP3 music downloads through the system powered by Amazon MP3. MySpace Music will now feature buy buttons that will allow users to download and purchase MP3s playable on all digital music players.

The new venture also means artists can stream any number of tracks on their site, including back catalogue, whereas before the number of tracks were limited. This means artists who were previously cautious about allowing tracks for download, or to be streamed on the site, can now do so worry-free.

MySpace Music UK is rumoured to be launching before Christmas.

Casual Games Go Social (Good event worth checkingout)

CASUAL GAMES ARE GOING SOCIAL
Is social gaming really the most powerful gaming revolution since the release of Pong?
Online games are joining forces with social networks to make a play for mass audiences. After fundamentally changing the internet and the ways people communicate and interact, the entire games industry is getting ready to be socialized. This phenomenon will be explored in detail during the PICNIC Special 'Games go Social' on September 26 in Amsterdam. Is social gaming really the most powerful gaming revolution since the release of Pong?
Casual Games are already setting new records with one-third of people ages 6 to 44 having played them, according to market researcher The NPD Group. With Facebook and MySpace battling over the position of the most popular social network (and Facebook proclaiming itself as the winner du jour), game developers have discovered a new friend, flirting with the millions of users that MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Hi5, Hyves and the likes have to offer. This is the theme of Games go Social on September 26 in Amsterdam

For more information on Games go Social, hosted on September 26 in Westergasfabriek Amsterdam, go to http://www.picnicnetwork.org/page/22325/en or contact Susanne Waldau-te Brake on +31 6 48 07 07 16 or by email susanne@exmachina.nl

SEVEN UP

News Bites

PopCap toasts Bejeweled's 25m sales

VP Digital play Studios MMO platform is a fundamental path for taking the Lego brand forwards.

Stardoll celebrates 20 million players

Mumbo Jumbo Releases Facebook title

EA could kill facebook says Sega

PC gaming Mrtket Hits $10.7 BILLION

Primary Wii Gamer in U.S. Households is Young Males

Hands-On Transferring EMEA Assets To Connect 2 Media

SOCIAL NETWOKS & GAMES

1) Casual Social networking games development has exploded
2) Popular themes tend to be the big hits for now, Poker, scrabble etc.
3) Tower Bloxx made the cross over from Social to Casual (Big Fish)
4) The over crowded market will become more savvy and Casual games biz has a big marketing opportunity with the right games and approaches.
5) FACEBOOK CONNECT for mobiles to be released.
6) Facebook may assist in the mass market acceptance of MICRO-TRANSACTIONS!

Majesco confirms Bananagrams for Facebook



Majesco has given popular word puzzler the Facebook treatment, with the game set to debut on the social networking site on August 18th.

Developed by Animal Games it challenges players to create as many words as they can as quickly as possible.

Human Pets Expands From Facebook To Standalone Site
from Worlds In Motion by research@gdmag.com (Eric Caoili)

Social gaming and dating community Human Pets has launched HumanPets.com, expanding its online hangout from a Facebook application to an independent site.

Targeted at both teens and young adults, Human Pets offers a virtual world based on the concept of having humans as pets. All users are animals who can be fed, groomed, nicknamed, and even sold and bought as pets. Players can also earn virtual currency.

Human Pets also offers adult content and activities to its 18-plus-years-old users in the form of optional paid memberships. A portion of the paid membership proceeds are donated to the World Wildlife Fund.

According to Human Pets, the community has grown to 2 million users since first launching as a Facebook app in summer 2007. 15,000 people have reportedly signed up for the independent site since its beta release last week.

New Facebook casual games developer emerges

CasualCafe has announced its plans to start developing games for Facebook.

The studio, which was originally founded to build online multiplayer games two years ago, is now offering social game arcade technology which offer users cross-game features like site points, achievements, micro-transactions and communication.