downloads

Mobile Gaming Is Hot, but Pocket Gems Won’t Sell Out

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 17 at 9:26 am PT

Pocket Gems says it is not for sale, even though other mobile gaming companies like OMGPOP and Funzio are cashing out at big valuations.

Zynga’s Draw Something Slingshots Past Angry Birds in App Store

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on April 5 at 6:00 am PT

Maybe now critics will stop saying that Zynga overpaid for it.

SmugMug’s Camera Awesome App Sees Two Million Downloads in First Week

Lauren Goode in Mobile on March 6 at 9:57 am PT

SmugMug’s new “awesomizing” photo app is getting an awesome response. (You knew that was coming.)

Can There Be Another Rovio? Outfit7 Wants to Give It a Shot.

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on February 7 at 3:00 am PT

Outfit7 says its games on the iPhone and iPad have hit more than 300 million downloads since launching a year and a half ago.

News Byte

Nintendo to Bring Online Game Network, NFC to New Wii

Lauren Goode in Commerce on January 27 at 1:19 pm PT

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told investors today that the Wii U, the company’s long-awaited successor to the Wii gaming console, will come equipped with NFC capabilities that will be used to transfer gaming data and will open the potential for micropayments through the gaming system. Satoru also said the company was readying an online game network for the Wii U system, citing lessons learned from the tepid launch of the 3DS.

Will There Be More Plush Toys? Rovio’s Former Branding Exec Lands at Big Fish Games.

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 25 at 6:00 am PT

Games maker Big Fish has hired former Rovio executive Wibe Wagemans to head up mobile.

eBay Predicts Mobile Commerce Will Grow 60 Percent in 2012

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 12 at 11:24 am PT

EBay’s John Donahoe has drawn his mobile prediction line in the sand for 2012, and it is pretty jaw-dropping.

Americans Played Anything but Social Games During the Holidays

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 3 at 7:30 am PT

The number of people playing games on Facebook tanked last week, as some game makers were unable to capitalize on people’s downtime during the holidays.

Appy Holidays: The First Billion-Download Week

Tricia Duryee in Mobile on January 2 at 2:37 pm PT

In addition to setting a record for the number of smartphones activated in a single day, the world has broken another barrier: The number of applications downloaded in one week.

News Byte

Just When You Thought Christmas Was Over: Apple’s Freebie App

Lauren Goode in Commerce on December 26, 2011 at 2:22 pm PT

Apple’s holiday gift to you: Even more Coldplay. Today, Apple rolled out its “12 Days of Christmas” app for iOS devices, offering free daily downloads of music and media through Jan. 6. The app — for iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and all iPads, as well as newer iPod touch devices — is available to users in the U.K., Canada, and parts of Europe; Apple did not respond to an inquiry about whether the app will be made available in the U.S. According to Boy Genius Report and others, the first free downloads are several Coldplay songs and videos, including a live album from a recent iTunes event in London.