Yukari Iwatani Kane, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal

Zynga's Rise Pushes Incumbents To Jump Into Social Videogames

May 10, 2010 at 12:55 am PT

The rise of social-gaming companies like Zynga Game Network Inc. is sending repercussions through the videogame industry, pushing established players to retool and fight back with similar games of their own.

Zynga produces simple online games that are typically played through Facebook as a way to socialize with friends. The games are generally free to play with options for users to buy virtual items.

Zynga’s “FarmVille,” in which players grow crops and raise livestock, is the most popular game on Facebook, with 78 million active monthly users, according to the measurement service Developer Analytics.

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Tagged with: Developer Analytics, digital, Facebook, Farmville, frontpage, gaming, Internet, social networking, software, The Wall Street Journal, Yukari Iwatani Kane, Zynga

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