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Global Star Software Releases "Sudoku Fever" for Game Boy Advance

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 8, 2006 - 3:54am.
New York - Global Star Software, a unit of video game publisher Take-Two Interactive, on Wednesday released its "Global Star Sudoku Fever" title for Nintendo Game Boy Advance in North America. Developed by U.K.-based Puzzle.tv, the title is also slated for release in Europe in March.
tags: Games | release | Global | Sudoku Fever |

Report: Q3 Online Ad Sales Total $2.43 Billion; Global Standards Approved

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 15, 2004 - 5:27am.
New York -- Online ad sales during the third quarter of 2004 totaled $2.43 billion, up 35.3% from the same period a year ago and 2.4% over second quarter totals, according to data from the New York-based Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). Online ad revenue so far this year is estimated at $7 billion, which already surpasses 2003's $7.3 billion annual total, and could yet potentially break the $8 billion record set in 2000. The Interactive Advertising Bureau also announced that key industry bodies have agreed on the first-ever global standards for measuring the effectiveness of online advertising, approved by groups including the Advertising Research Foundation, American Association of Advertising Agencies, World Federation of Advertisers and ESOMAR. The new standards say that publishers must count an ad impression only upon delivery to an end user, and not when it leaves an advertiser's server; they also prohibit counting traffic generated by "spiders" or "bots" trolling the Internet, and recommends third-party independent auditing and certification guidelines for all ad-serving applications. "These guidelines demonstrate our continued commitment to being the most accountable ad medium. In just 10 short years we rocketed forward by offering marketers a whole new experience for measuring ad campaigns," said IAB CEO Greg Stuart.
tags: Internet | Reports | Global | Q3 |

Report: Global MP3 Player Sales Will Double in 2004 to 20 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 21, 2004 - 4:56am.
London -- Global sales of MP3 players are expected to double in 2004, to more than 20 million units, according to London-based market research firm Informa Media Group. Sales are also projected to grow at an average annual rate of almost 45% for the next six years, with sales of 194 million units predicted for 2010. "As legal downloading is in an early stage of development, incompatibility with some portable players is not an issue" said Informa senior research analyst Simon Dyson. "However, if recent forecasts for digital sales growth are accurate, incompatibility between some downloads and the most popular portable players could become an issue in the very near future." Currently, tracks purchased from Napster and other Microsoft-powered services are not compatible with Apple's iPod, and songs from Apple's iTunes Store aren't compatible with a number of portable devices.
tags: Reports | Global | MP3 Player | Double |

Report: Internet Telephony Poised to Transform Global Telecommunications

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 26, 2004 - 7:17am.
London -- According to a new study conducted by analysis firm Juniper Research, Internet telephony -- also known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) -- is set to account for about 12% of global telephone revenues within the next five years. Juniper goes on to predict that the VoIP market will account for roughly $32 billion of the estimated overall market of $260 billion by the year 2009. "VoIP brings new revenue-generating opportunities to the telephony market, by combining voice services with other IP applications," said Juniper Research broadband specialist Ian Cox. "This will redefine the telephone, bringing brand new services with telephony at its core." The report also called on lawmakers not to over-regulate the market. "A balance needs to be established between promoting healthy market competition and ensuring widespread VoIP adoption on a fair and equitable basis," Juniper said. "VoIP requires nurturing in the early years as the market develops."
tags: Internet | Reports | telecommunications | Global | Telephony |

Report: Global Digital Camera Shipments Rise 39% in 2004 to 68.6 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 18, 2004 - 8:06am.
New York -- Worldwide shipments of digital still cameras are expected to rise 39% in 2004, from 47.9 million to 68.6 million units, and grow to 100 million units in 2008, according to a report from New York-based market research firm IDC. The firm noted that the market saw a 71% increase in digital camera shipments between 2002 and 2003. Among manufacturers, Sony accounted for 18% of the market in 2003, followed by Canon (16%), Olympus and Kodak. The strong growth in unit shipments is expected to decrease as cell phone makers begin to equip their handsets with more powerful digital camera features. Currently in the U.S., camera phone picture resolution pales in comparison with the quality available on traditional digital still cameras.
tags: VC | Reports | Global | Digital Camera |

Report: Global Digital Video Recorder Revenues to Hit $5.6 Billion by 2008

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 17, 2004 - 5:12am.
London -- Over 2.7 million digital video recorders were sold worldwide in 2003, an annual sales figure expected to grow to 27.6 million by 2008, when the market will support annual revenues of $5.6 billion, according to projections from market research firm Strategy Analytics. A market share breakdown by manufacturer shows that Scientific-Atlanta increased its share of the digital video recorder market to 25% last year, equal to satellite TV provider EchoStar (25%) and ahead of Pace Micro Technology (10%), Hughes Network Systems (10%) and Motorola (7%). The firm indicated that other firms like Sony, Samsung, Pioneer and Philips must "improve their focus with service providers if they are to make any impression on this rapidly growing market." A total of 71.5 million digital video recorders are projected to be in use worldwide by 2008.
tags: Reports | Global | Hit | Digital Video | Recorder |

Microsoft to Ban Pop-Up Ads on Global Websites by Summer

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 17, 2004 - 8:29am.
Brussels -- According to news media, U.S. software giant Microsoft has decided to phase out pop-up ads on most of its MSN websites worldwide by this summer. The decision follows a survey conducted by Microsoft that found that most consumers dislike pop-up ads. Microsoft said the ban would first go into effect for the Nordic region, Belgium and the U.K. and then extend to other European countries soon thereafter. A company spokesman said local countries would "make the change at the best time to suit their local market needs and to meet pre-existing arrangements with MSN customers".
tags: Microsoft | Websites | Global | Pop-Up | Summer |

Report: Global Online Population Grew 4% in 2002 to 580 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 21, 2003 - 2:45am.
New York -- The global Internet population grew about 4 percent during 2002 to 580 million, with the U.S. accounting for the largest share of this figure with 29 percent of total Internet users, according to a report from Internet audience measurement firm Nielsen/NetRatings. "Nearly 10 million people over the age of 16 gained Internet access in the U.S. between the end of 2001 and the end of 2002, significantly more than in the other 10 markets studied," said Nielsen/NetRatings' Richard Goosey. Other regions surveyed included several countries in Europe as well as Hong Kong, Australia and Brazil. Spain, with an increase of 22 percent in its online population during 2002, and is heralded as "the next great Internet market" in the report.
tags: Internet | Reports | Global | Grew | Population |