Multiplayer Game 'Eve Online' Has Devoted Following

Multiplayer Game 'Eve Online' Cultivates a Most Devoted Following - Businessweek: "Released by CCP in 2003, Eve has cultivated the most loyal following of all the massively multiplayer games and turned into something of a controlled experiment in human nature and unfettered capitalism. It’s also the brightest spot in Iceland’s real-world economy. In the wake of the 2008 global credit crisis, as the country’s banking sector smoldered, CCP plotted its expansion and put the finishing touches on a new office. Last year it brought in about $65 million in revenue. The company employs close to 600 people, or 0.2 percent of Iceland’s population. (An equivalent U.S. company would have about 626,000 employees.) And unlike fishing, aluminum smelting, or Iceland’s other major industries, running a digital space empire does not deplete natural resources. About 500,000 people play Eve, more than live in Iceland; CCP employees never seem to tire of pointing that out, and other Icelanders note it with pride." (read more at link above)


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What It Takes: Create a Start-Up Community

Are start-up communities created deliberately or organically?

What It Takes to Create a Start-Up Community - NYTimes.com: "Richard Florida, co-founder of the Atlantic Cities blog, and an urban studies professor at the University of Toronto and New York University, said Silicon Beach is part of an interesting evolution happening in entrepreneurial activity — it’s moving from the suburbs to the cities. “During the Industrial Age, a lot of activity moved to the edge of cities and to the suburbs,” he said. “And we believed then cities had been supplanted. High tech was happening in suburban areas of Silicon Valley, and outside of Boston, Seattle, in the Austin suburbs, in Research Triangle. But in the past several years we’ve seen an incredible, accelerating shift in start-up activity back to urban centers.”. .. ." (read more at link above)


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Tech hub movement - calls to action

Tech hub movement gains steam with calls to action - Business Monday - MiamiHerald.com: "Last week, the business community was celebrating how far the South Florida tech community has come while at the same time acknowledging the hard road ahead. At an evening gathering of entrepreneurs, corporate executives, education and government leaders and investors, Manny Medina officially announced the launch of the Technology Foundation of the Americas, which will bring a major tech conference, called eMerge Americas, to South Florida next May. But make no mistake, the greater goal is for Miami to be a tech hub for Latin America. Let’s get this done, said the Foundation’s CEO, Diane Sanchez: “We are not just bringing a tech conference here, we are building a movement.”. . . "

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Urban Density and Innovation

The Urban Density and Innovation correlation--

America's Truly Densest Metros - Richard Florida - The Atlantic Cities: " . . . Density has long been seen as a key factor in the ability of cities to innovate and grow, but exactly how it does so remains an open question. Rappaport's study, in fact, suggests that there is not a one-to-one relationship between density and productivity, noting that the "productivity required to sustain above-average population densities considerably exceeds estimates of the increase in productivity caused by such high density." Silicon Valley remains tremendously innovative at medium levels of density. The world's densest cities in Asia and elsewhere can take the form of skyscraper districts which limit interaction and function as kind of vertical sprawl. At the same time, more and more start-ups and innovative high-tech firms are choosing locations in the urban districts of New York, London, San Francisco, Boston, and other cities, as opposed to the traditional industrial and office parks of suburban nerdistans. . . "

Inside the mind of Eric Schmidt | Alan Rusbridger | Technology | guardian.co.uk: "Schmidt on the power of connectivity - I would argue that Google and the internet enable people to move up the supply chain. So people, instead of doing rote work, can do more creative work. More creative work requires more jobs, more fees, and so forth. Agriculture is getting mechanised, which has been true for hundreds of years; people are moving to cities. Cities are more productive than rural farming anyway; they are more connected. Creativity will drive innovation, innovation will drive new businesses, new jobs, and so forth. That's how economics works. That is the story of the British industrial revolution. If governments stay out of the way and allow this connectivity to occur, the core human creativity, this passion for making the world a better place, takes over."

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Google Developing Android Game Center

Code for features like multiplayer options, notifications, in-game chat, achievement tracking, community leaderboards, and pre-game chat rooms was hidden within the Google Play Services suite that was, ostensibly, included in the Glass app by accident. The multiplayer support is arguably the most interesting feature as it provides for both turn-based and real-time multiplayer gaming, the latter of which could potentially utilize in-game chat. (source: infra) 

Google Developing Android Game Center, According to MyGlass Leak - IGN: The team behind Google Glass’ companion app, MyGlass, may have inadvertently spilled the beans on an upcoming Android game center with a variety of features that could potentially revolutionize Android gaming. According to the sleuths at Android Police, the leak was discovered while they were snooping around in the apk file for MyGlass and it contains a few juicy hints about what an Android game center could have in store for users. According to Ron Amadeo of Android Police: It sounds like Google is going to take on multiplayer gaming in a big way. They're developing a plug-in gaming service that handles every common multiplayer feature gamers have come to expect. Developers' lives should get a whole lot easier, and multiplayer gaming on Android should get a whole lot better.

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Venture Capital and Entrepreneurship in Latin America in 2013 (video)

The State of Venture Capital and Entrepreneurship in Latin America in 2013 - April 18, 2013, from The LAB Miami, sponsored by Americas Society Council of the Americas and Latin American Venture Capital Association (program begins at 30:45)

AS/COA and LAVCA hosted a forum on venture capital and entrepreneurship in Latin America. Speakers:
Cate Ambrose, President, Latin American Venture Capital Association (LAVCA)
Juan Pablo Cappello, Co-Founder and Board Member, Idea.me(moderator)
Boris Hirmas Said, Chairman, Tres Mares S.A. (Santiago, Chile); Chairman, Yellow Pepper Mexico SA de CV; and Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Pino Center, Florida International University
Manuel D. Medina, Managing Partner, Medina Capital Group
Andres Moreno, Founder and CEO, Open English

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US Internet Gambling a/k/a online gaming

US iGaming expansion | Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. - JDSupra: "More than twenty five years ago, gaming in the United States faced a conundrum as Indian Tribes and States debated the legality of gambling on tribal lands. The issue culminated in a landmark decision in the United State Supreme Court, California v Cabazon Band of Indians, 480 U.S. 202 (1987), and eventually led to the passage of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), Pub. L. 100-497. The Obama Administration's 20 September 2011 opinion, made public on 23 December 2011, has now created a similar uncertainty in the realm of online gaming. The Department of Justice reversed its long-held position regarding the Wire Act of 1962. In a new opinion, the Executive Branch concluded that the Wire Act applies only to sport-related gambling activities in interstate and foreign commerce." (read more at link above)

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Video Games in Cuba

Cuban revolution gets video game treatment - Washington Post: Video games have been booming in Latin America in recent years, and programmers from countries like Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico are increasingly getting into the business, said Rolando Bozas, an Argentine software expert, though obstacles remain. "It's getting better and better," Bozas said. "But there is a ton of piracy." Rene Vargas, a 29-year-old gamer who tried his hand at "Gesta Final" when it was presented at a technology fair in Havana last week, said the graphics were surprisingly sophisticated. "Bearing in mind the level of technical support there is in Cuba, it looks pretty good," Vargas said . . . Mexican game developer Gonzalo "Phill" Sanchez said Latin American video games tend to fall into two categories: Those with highly localized appeal, and those that can reach broader audiences. "Gesta Final," he said, surely falls into the former. The game is expected to be released on the island in the coming months with no current plans to market it overseas. A price tag has yet to be decided, but nobody's expecting it to rake in piles of cash with most Cubans earning about $20 per month at their government jobs. . . .(read more at link above)

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Modular Tablet: the Future of Gaming and Computing

This Modular Tablet Could Be the Future of Gaming -- and Computing | MIT Technology Review: "Users loved the idea of a tablet with side-mounted controllers. But they didn’t want them to be on there permanently. It felt weird. They wanted the tablet to be free to roam independently of those controllers, to have a life of its own. “So we started thinking about this idea about how we make it modular and being able to snap different accessories on the tablet,” the company’s senior industrial designer, Francois Laine, said to IGN. This was a very smart decision. What distinguishes the Edge, the successor to Project Fiona, is the fact that it can wear many hats. The tablet can snap in and out of a GamePad, a casing featuring those two side-mounted controllers, bringing real gaming controls to bear. And the device can dock with a TV, making it double as a console of sorts. A laptop dock is forthcoming, “which will effectively enable you to turn the Edge into a little gaming laptop,” says CNET’s Scott Stein." (read more at link above)

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Competing in a digital world

Competing in a digital world - McKinsey Quarterly - Business Technology - Organization: Almost every company is becoming a software company. By considering business and operating models pioneered by the software industry and tailoring them to their own needs, organizations can lower their costs, boost performance, and turn software into a competitive advantage. (read more at link above, and articles cited below)

• David Kirkpatrick, “Now every company is a software company,” forbes.com, November 30, 2011.
• Marc Andreessen, “Why software is eating the world,” Wall Street Journal, August 20, 2011."

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Creating an Office People Never Want To Leave (video)

Google's Christopher Coleman takes Bloomberg Businessweek inside the Mountainview headquarters of the Internet search giant, and talks about how to create a workplace employees never want to leave.

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Largest gathering of offensive hackers meet in Miami

No nametags. No photographs. No video. Attendees remain utterly anonymous -- and that’s the way they like it--

Offensive security hackers from all over the world met in Miami April 11-12--the best and brightest in the hacker community--the largest gathering of purely offensive information security experts in the world, including more than 200 hackers from as far away as Israel, India, Sweden and China. Organized and sponsored by Immunity, an education firm founded by former NSA hacker Dave Aitel: “Defensive information security tends to focus on potential protective measures,” he told FoxNews.com. “Offensive information security looks purely at getting into computers -- and staying there undetected.” Who uses offensive techniques? A wide range of people from governments and banks through to researchers working on protecting critical national infrastructure. “INFILTRATE is important because it is the only conference dedicated to offensive information security techniques. Attendees share technical competence in the area plus a common interest in learning more about it. Legendary hacker “RenderMan,” also known as Brad Haines, gave a keynote on “Attacking the Next Generation Air Traffic Control System” -- hacking the FAA’s monitoring system. “I came to INFILTRATE to spread knowledge of vulnerabilities in air traffic control in hopes that the attention and collaboration with other hackers would result in a safer and more secure air traffic control system,” he told FoxNews.com. Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/04/12/largest-gathering-offensive-hackers-converges-on-miami/#ixzz2QMw0n8Qk

more info at: http://infiltratecon.com/

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LucasArts closed by Disney

Not really a surprise--Disney is driven by bean counters--

LucasArts: closed by Disney, but killed by Star Wars? | Technology | guardian.co.uk: " . . . new owner Disney announced that it would be closing the studio, placing considerable doubt over the future of current projects Star Wars 1313 and First Assault, and resulting in the loss of up to 150 jobs. A statement read simply: After evaluating our position in the games market, we've decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company's risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games. As a result of this change, we've had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles. LucasArts itself had experimented with the licensing model in the past . . ."

Disney shuts down LucasArts' 'Star Wars' video game franchise - SiliconValley.com: "In December, Disney announced that it acquired Lucasfilm, special effects giant Industrial Light & Magic, LucasArts and sound studio Skywalker Sound for $4.06 billion in cash and stock from its sole owner, George Lucas. Disney said at the time that it issued 37.1 million shares and made a cash payment of $2.21 billion to buy the maker of "Star Wars" from Lucas. The video game blog Kotaku, citing an anonymous source, reported Wednesday that Disney's pullout of LucasArts meant that 150 people were laid off and that "Star Wars: First Assault" and "Stars Wars 1313" were canceled. Disney has said it plans to revive the "Star Wars" movie franchise beginning with Episode 7"

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Google's Mobile Game Ingress (video)

Google's Mobile Game Ingress Finds a Passionate Following - Liz Gannes - Mobile - AllThingsD: ". . . The “Ingress Report” news show is all very tongue-in-cheek — since the content obviously comes from Google — but it’s a fun concept to buy into, and it might make the game at least a little bit more accessible. In the first installment (which is embedded above), anchor “Susanna Moyer” says as she invites fans to combat censorship by Niantic Labs, ”If you support an unbiased news source in the world of Ingress, share your reports with us.” A fan named Alex Ander commented on the episode, “I love Ingress and everything, but I can’t deny this is one of the geekiest things I’ve ever seen.”. . . "

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Google rumor - acquisition of WhatsApp

Messaging Apps are leapfrogging social media sites like Facebook--now Google may be entering the fray--

Rumor: Google negotiating $1 billion acquisition of WhatsApp | Digital Trends: " . . . more importantly, WhatsApp has a proven monetization scheme. Its yearly but nominal $0.99 subscription fee keeps the service ad-free. Behind the scenes however, WhatsApp also generates revenue through profitable partnerships with international telecommunications companies. For instance WhatsApp’s monthly local plan in Hong Kong with mobile operator 3 HK costs just $8HK ($1.03 USD) and an international package will run for $48HK ($6.18 USD) per day. And whatever Whatsapp is doing is working: The app has even had a direct hand in declining SMS usage around the world. . . ."


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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Calls for New Commercial Spaceport

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Calls for New Commercial Spaceport : US : Latinos Post: ""There's an important need for Air Force space launch bases as there is for Air Force airports," Musk later told an audience gathered at a South by Southwest festival event hall. He named the spaceports run by the Air Force at Cape Canaveral in Florida and Vandenberg in California. "But then there's also a need for commercial airports," Musk said, adding that such space travel hubs need to be close to the Equator and able to launch missions --- making Texas a leading candidate, the San Antonio Express-News reported him saying.
Musk disputed the idea his outfit is competing with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which is currently Spacex's biggest customer. Then again, "We lost the will to explore and lost the will to push the boundary," Musk said of the U.S. space program. But, regardless, he said, "the United States is a nation of explorers; the United States is a distillation of the human spirit of exploration." Musk has said he started SpaceX in an attempt to spur Congress to increase NASA's funding for human missions to Mars" (read more at link above)


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Cross-platform gaming in the Microsoft ecosystem

Why cross-platform gaming is Microsoft's secret weapon | PCWorld: " . . . Players and critics lambasted the game for a variety of reasons, but the multiplayer disparity between PC and console players was always front and center. PC gamers on mice and keyboards simply had a speed advantage over Xbox gamers sadled with their handheld controllers. Similarly, PC gamers playing with the highest resolution settings could see more of the game environment, and this too gave them an advantage over console competitors. The upshot? Fast-paced games that reward accuracy and quick reflexes simply aren't fun to play in cross-platform multiplayer matches. Slower, asynchronous, turn-based multiplayer games, however, are much better suited to Microsoft's cross-platform approach. Borut Pfeiffer, an independent developer who worked on Skulls of the Shogun, says the game's multiplayer element succeeds across multiple platforms because it's anchored by turn-based strategy, and challenges players' wits instead of reflexes. What's more, the Skulls Anywhere cross-platform multiplayer mode lets you play on any type of Microsoft hardware. You can start a game on your Xbox 360, playing against someone on a PC. Then three hours later, both you and your competitor can switch to playing on a Surface RT and Windows Phone. . . ." (read more at link above)


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Mass Effect studio working on brand new series

Mass Effect studio working on brand new series
Computerandvideogames.com
BioWare Edmonton, the studio responsible for the Mass Effect series, is working on a brand new IP. Mass Effect 3 Screenshot Mass Effect executive producer Casey Hudson has revealed at PAX East that the Edmonton team is working on a "whole new ...( read more at link above)

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