How to Adapt a Teen Soap for a Social Network

Sony Pictures has recently begun streaming a teen soap with a difference on Bebo, a social network catering to teen users: users have a say in the development of the story. Read all bout it here.

New Study: Casual Games Puts You in A Great Mood!

Popcap has just released a new study stating that casual games puts you in a good mood.

Wow. I must be the only guy on the planet that gets depressed when playing a casual game (is it sarcasm i'm sensing here...). Other ideas for similar research:

RPGs have a tendency to stimulate imagination
FSPs makes you more agressive
Drinking makes you drunk

In case you want to read the whole thing, click here.

Apple to Open iPhone Platform to 3rd Party Developers

Apple has announced that it will open up its iPhone platform, via what is called a software development kit (SDK), to third-party mobile software developers. And, of course, marketers are expected to rush in... More about this after the jump.

Microsoft's Live Mesh: Too Good to Be True?

Developers are questioning Microsoft's commitment to make Live Mesh an open source environment... especially considering that Mac won't be part of the launch. Read all about it in this BBC story.

NASA Cuts MMO Budget from 3 Millions to... 0

Nasa has asked MMO developers to develop NASA-themed MMO for free... Its commitmen will now be restricted at providing subject matter experts. Their new approach will be more along the lines of providing an IP that developers will be able to exploit along the lines of what is going on in Hollywood. More about this in Gamasutra (click here for full story).

This decision implies - of course - the need for developers to find new business models for their serious games. Here's an interesting post about the subject on elianealhadeff.blogspot.com.

US Spies Training with Serious Games

Wired has published a very interesting story about the use of serious games to train America's Secret Services. Read all bout it here.

Press Release: Technicolor and CinemaNow Partner to Offer Retailers an Optimized Digital Movie Solution

BURBANK, Calif. and MARINA DEL REY, Calif. -- April 15, 2008 -- Technicolor, the Services Division of Thomson (Euronext 18453; NYSE: TMS), and CinemaNow, an innovator in digital entertainment technology, delivering high-quality Hollywood movies, TV shows and music videos to users across multiple platforms, announced today that the two companies have partnered to offer online retailers a better way to deliver the digital content consumers are demanding.

Under the new partnership, Technicolor and CinemaNow will provide a seamless, fully-integrated platform for the electronic delivery of movies, TV shows, music and software to consumers via a broadband Internet connection. This platform will include content encoding and encryption, digital rights management (DRM), hosting and storage, promotions and ad management, streaming or download delivery, order fulfillment, reporting, and forensics. This end-to-end delivery channel will utilize Technicolor’s purpose-built infrastructure and CinemaNow’s well-developed storefront and Media Manager application to facilitate new and exciting developments in electronic content distribution.

Online retailers wishing to enter the digital market or to replace legacy solutions will benefit from optimized user interfaces, streamlined infrastructure and an extensive reporting system provided by the end-to-end offering that CinemaNow and Technicolor’s Electronic Distribution Services (EDS) business will offer. Emerging digital delivery services such as e-Copy and second session, which are supplementary digital versions of physical DVDs purchased at retail stores, and online downloads will work across CinemaNow’s entire ecosystem of compatible consumer electronic devices including PCs, portable media players (PMP), digital television sets (DTV), set top boxes (STB), and network attached storage (NAS) devices from manufacturers such as Archos, Dish Network, HP, and Samsung.

Scott Dougall, senior vice president and general manager of Technicolor EDS, said, “This is the next stage in the evolution of the broadband digital supply chain. As the distribution of content transitions from physical to digital, a new streamlined infrastructure is required. The partnership between CinemaNow and Technicolor will bring together and unify two major pieces of a traditionally fragmented solution.”

Under the terms of the partnership, CinemaNow and Technicolor will also collaborate on special projects including adding HD movies to CinemaNow’s library of more than 10,000 titles available via embedded stores and consumer electronic devices. The partnership will also enable CinemaNow to expand internationally, leveraging Technicolor’s digital supply chain services including preparing and hosting movies with subtitles and foreign language audio tracks.

“As an innovator in this industry, CinemaNow always seeks to partner with those that share our vision of creating an unparalleled consumer experience.” said David Cook, president and COO of CinemaNow. “By combining Technicolor’s superior infrastructure with our proven distribution technology, our goal is to provide the most effective way to date for online retailers to deliver digital entertainment to their customers.”

Founded in 2007, Technicolor EDS (www.technicolor.com/eds) addresses the growing need for digital content distribution services in the media and entertainment industries. Its business model is unique, and unlike other outsourced content delivery networks that only distribute content, Technicolor EDS offers clients a comprehensive suite of end-to-end or a la carte services – from content preparation and digital rights management to global distribution and reporting. Technicolor EDS also provides a host of online services to help bring new and innovative Internet-based connectivity functions for digital copy DVDs and emerging interactive features for Blu-ray discs.

About Thomson — World leader in digital video technologies Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453; NYSE: TMS) provides technology, services, and systems to the Media, Entertainment & Communications players – content creators, content distributors and broadcasters – and supports them in order to help them to improve their commercial offers and their performance in a rapidly changing technology environment. For more information: www.thomson.net

About CinemaNow
CinemaNow, Inc. is an innovator in digital entertainment technology, delivering high-quality Hollywood movies, TV shows and music videos to users across multiple platforms. Founded in 1999, CinemaNow has partnered with some of the biggest brands in consumer electronics and digital entertainment including ARCHOS, EchoStar Communications, Hewlett-Packard, Macrovision, Microsoft, Samsung and Sonic Solutions to deliver thousands of video titles directly to consumers. CinemaNow works with more than 250 licensors including 20th Century Fox, ABC News, Disney, HDNet, Lionsgate, MGM, Miramax, NBC Universal, New Line Cinema, Paramount Pictures, Sony, Sundance Channel and Warner Bros. For more information: www.cinemanow.com