Gaming

Qwest Launches Game Download Service

Bernie — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:13:48 -0400

Qwest announced the launch of qZone, a digital content store with more than 1,400 PC games and software applications available to Qwest broadband subscribers. Games available at qZone include 18 Wheels of Steel: American Long Haul, Bejeweled 2 Deluxe and Mystery Case Files. In addition to games, qZone also offers software applications such as Web page development software, a DVD player with creator functions, popular foreign-language learning tools and other educational software. “At Qwest, qZone marks the beginning of our convergent content capabilities, which we see as the next generation of bundling,” said Ken Rambo, product director at Qwest.

Verizon Gets Its Game On

Bernie — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 10:19:48 -0400

Verizon is joining some of its competitors by launching a suite of casual games for its FiOS subscriber base. AT&T and DISH Networks have recently announced similar launches. Shawn Strickland, Verizon’s vice president of video solutions, tells Multichannel News that the game titles will include games like chess and sudoku, educational titles, and interactive games developed for DVD platforms. Verizon intends on making some titles free and charging for others through pay-per-play and/or monthly subscription fees. Gaming has always been seen as a potential differentiation strategy.

Defining a lucrative business model for television based gaming has been a little elusive. In the U.S., gaming’s most passionate players tend to be console (and to some extent PC based) players. Passionate participants tend to be the ones willing to spend real dollars. Verizon’s (and others) initiative targets more casual gamers, who represent a decent sized market. Multicchannel News reports that the Casual Games Association, an industry trade group, estimates more than 200 million people worldwide play such games on the Internet today. The question yet to be fully answered with casual gamers is the amount of revenue a service provider can consistently generate from them. There certainly is an argument to be made for not looking at casual gaming as a profit center, rather as a differentiating hook to attract and retain subscribers. Gaming experiments will certainly continue, as triple play competitors continually strive to find the right combination of services/features that keeps paying customers coming (and staying).

Telcos May Have Gaming Competitive Advantage

Bernie — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 11:49:21 -0400

Telcos may have a competitive advantage with the burgeoning online gaming business. Not to be confused with gambling, the online gaming business which includes massively multiplayer online role playing games (MMORG) is expected to have significant growth in the U.S., and telecom carriers are aiming to leverage their assets to take advantage of it. Much more popular in Asia, MMORG is beginning to take hold in the U.S.

MMORGs place massive burdens on broadband networks because they are bandwidth intensive. But it goes well beyond a fat pipe into the home, and that is where telcos may have an advantage. Within the network, assets like well distributed data centers, disaster recovery, and business continuity are desirable by game developers and distributors. The well entrenched telecom network in the U.S. lends itself to offering this reliable infrastructure, and telcos are beginning to realize that the gaming industry is a desirable business partner.

Find out more in this expansive Billing World article.