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Should Apple Enter The Gaming Market?

These are mysterious times. Mysterious indeed. Apple, after dominating the music industry and making a respectably deep dent in the cellphone industry. The Apple TV is also running decently enough, making sure that Apple can invade your TV screens as well. The only field left is… book publishing? No, video games.

According to Don Reisinger here at Cnet, this is not only plausible, but actually should and will most likely happen. Reisinger speculates that Apple in fact, has the ball rolling and will jump into the market sooner or later. Despite the market’s hard-coded domination by Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo, Apple will break in. Then again, it’s the only company that can break into the market on their own.

Apple’s focus on hardware and it’s controlling standard entertainment media such as TV, music, your computer and so on, only points at a game console next. Apple also the money to spare, Reisinger notes: $20 billion, which can give it not only a console, but an Xbox-Live style gaming experience that may thrash Microsoft.

What do you think? Will Apple enter the gaming market?

Posted in Game Business, Video Games
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DC Comics get some Motion

“Warner Premiere’s Motion Comics” are short-form digital content pieces based on DC Comics. They bring  movements, voice-overs, music scores, and comic book artwork to life.

DC Comics is giving away an episode of Watchmen for free for the next two weeks at www.ew.com/watchmen. Beginning August 2, Watchmen Motion Comic will be available on the iTunes Store www.itunes.com for purchase and download for $1.99.

More titles will be unveiled after Comic Con!

Watchmen – Motion Comic
Watchmen takes viewers through the critically acclaimed DC Comics and Hugo award-winning graphic novel by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons. Set in 1985 at the height of the cold war between the United States and the Soviet Union, costumed avengers have been banned with the exception of two – The Comedian and Rorschach. During this time the mysterious murder of a United States government official named Edward Blake occurs in New York, possibly by Soviet Communists. It is later confirmed that Blake is actually a costumed avenger – The Comedian. The news of the murder is discovered by his fellow costumed avenger, Rorschach who sets out to discover the murderer.

During his search viewers discover whether Rorschach is really insane or if he’s uncovered a plot to murder super-heroes and, even worse, millions of innocent civilians. On the run from the law, Rorschach reunites with his former teammates in a desperate attempt to save the world and their lives. But what they uncover will shock them to their very core and change the face of the planet. Following two generations of masked superheroes from the close of World War II to the icy shadow of the Cold War comes this groundbreaking comic story — the story of The Watchmen.

Batman: Mad Love Batman:
Mad Love is taken directly from the pages of the Eisner Award-winning single issue graphic novel by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm. The story revolves around The Joker’s sidekick Harley Quinn who is madly in love with him. She uses crime to demonstrate her love for her “Puddin’” and sets out to commit the ultimate act of love – killing Batman.

The Batman: Mad LoveMotion Comic will be available to purchase from Xbox Live and viewing on mobile phones enabled for Verizon Wireless’ V CAST Video service starting July 22. “Batman: Mad Love” episodes will also be available from other distribution partners in the coming months.

Posted in Comics, Video, iPod
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iTunes free downloads - Why US only?

Courtesy of Apple

Courtesy of Apple

Perhaps the title of this article is misleading a little. The real question is why are extended trailers for movies, known as the sneak peaks only available for US users of the iTunes service? The most recent example of this is how iTunes has just had added a 7 minute, 100MB long trailer added for the upcoming movie Get Smart starring Anne Hathaway.

The catch is while you can watch it if you have a US iTunes account if you are anywhere else in the world or don’t have a US credit card you’re out of luck. Considering it’s a promotional piece to make people want to watch the movie and the movie comes out all over the world and not just the US it makes no sense to have regional barriers in place stopping other people watching the video when it could lead to additional revenue.

There are other items such as free tracks from bands to promote their upcoming albums which are also banned for non-US users and then there are free episodes of television shows from the major US networks also included which are blocked to outside users. The question remains why would you add a regional block to an advert for something which is to be sold in all countries. Perhaps this shows just how paranoid about legal restrictions the film companies are now becoming and the entertainment industry as a whole.

What does this mean for you? If you’re in the US not a thing. If you’re outside the US a whole load of problems and steam coming from your ears after being short changed.

Posted in Movies, Opinion, Real-Life, Software, TV Shows, Technology, iPod
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