Eric David
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China legalizes video game console sales
China has officially legalized the sale of home video game consoles after a 14-year ban. China initially banned video game consoles in 2000 to fight what the government considered to be a corrupting influence on the nation’s children. Bloomberg reports that after a brief trial period of console sales within Shanghai’s free-trade zone, China has finally ...
Alibaba invests $10 million to save Ouya, a palm-sized game console
Alibaba has injected $10 million in capital into Santa Monica-based game console maker Ouya, paving the way for the tiny Android-powered system to find new life in China. Ouya first began as a record breaking Kickstarter project that earned over $8.5 million from backers, making it the third highest earning Kickstarter project to date. The Kickstarter ...
Facebook’s “Place Tips” shows location-specific newsfeeds
Facebook Inc.’s has launched a new feature called Place Tips, which promises to deliver location-based content to users’ newsfeeds. Facebook’s product manager Mike LeBeau writes that the new feature “will show you fun, useful and relevant info about the place you’re at.” Place Tips is an opt-in service that uses a combination of Wi-Fi and GPS data ...
Facebook takes on Twitter with real-time Super Bowl ads
Facebook Inc. has taken notice of the spike in social media buzz that occurs during big events like the Super Bowl, and this year the social network is taking the initiative by creating a live feed page dedicated to real-time coverage of the game. “From kickoff to the game’s final seconds, Super Bowl XLIX is likely to ...
Steam Workshop users earned over $57 million – More games added
Steam Workshop content creators have earned over $57 million since Valve corporation launched the user-generated marketplace in 2011, and now Valve is expanding the Workshop to two non-Valve games for the first time ever. Steam Workshop began in 2011 as a way for talented and creative users to earn money by designing and sellinging their ...
Dragon Age: Inquisition is Bioware’s most successful launch ever
At Electronic Arts Inc.’s Q3 earnings call, the company claimed that the November release of Dragon Age: Inquisition was the most successful game launch in Bioware’s history, topping other hit games by the developer such as Mass Effect, Knights of the Old Republic, and the original Dragon Age: Origins. “Dragon Age: Inquisition captivated fans and critics worldwide as it ...
Facebook censors Mohammed pages despite “Je suis Charlie” support
Facebook Inc. has reportedly blocked numerous pages in Turkey after a Turkish court declared the pages to be insulting to the Prophet Mohammed. The removal of the pages comes just over two weeks after Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote a strongly worded post in support of free speech shortly after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in ...
Twitter ads will target U.K. voters by postcode
The days of automated phone calls by political campaigns are numbered as Twitter begins showing targeted ads to voters in the United Kingdom. The new ads will use Twitter’s location data to specifically target voters not only by GPS or cell tower data, but by their postcode, showing them the most relevant political ads based ...
Valve permanently bans pro Counter Strike players for match fixing
In another blow to the credibility of e-sports, Valve Corporation has banned a number of Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) players for allegedly fixing matches to earn money from gambling. A CS:GO match was held in August between iBUYPOWER and NetcodeGuides.com. The iBUYPOWER team was the favorite to win by a large margin, being one of the top teams in ...
A $129,000 PS4 and two new releases, today in gaming news
When Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. announced a limited run, twentieth anniversary edition of the PlayStation 4, there was speculation that the console could become a hot item on auction for buyers who were not able to nab one of the 12,300 units. Those predictions came true recently when one wealthy PlayStation fan shelled out close to $129,000 ...