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  • Kobo Essay Contest Features Power Lunch With Author Kelly Cutrone

29th June 2011

Kobo Essay Contest Features Power Lunch With Author Kelly Cutrone

koboKobo has launched a new essay contest in which the winner will enjoy a private power lunch with television personality and New York Times’ bestselling author Kelly Cutrone. Today through July 8, 2011, Cutrone fans can visit Kobo’s Facebook Page and write a short essay answer to the question: “How has normal has gotten you nowhere and how are you ready to make new moves?”

Open to residents of the continental United States and Canada (excluding Quebec), the winning essay will be chosen by Cutrone. The winner will be flown to Toronto to power lunch with the author. Cutrone will Normal Gets You Nowhere by Kelly Cutroneshare her unique brand of no-nonsense wisdom to help the winner move forward in his or her life.

“Kelly was recently in Toronto and expressed her love of Kobo as well as her desire to work with us in a way which would be truly meaningful for her fans. Kelly loves Canada and was keen to partner with Kobo on this content,” said Liz Ridout, vice president of marketing at Kobo.

“Toronto stole my heart. Anytime I can come to Toronto to see my friends and fans is a good day!” said Cutrone.

Cutrone has been a force in the fashion industry for more than 25 years. She quickly moved from industry icon to media maverick, originally appearing on MTV’s hit shows The Hills and The City. She executive produced and appeared on the Bravo series Kell on Earth and is a special contributor on the syndicated Dr. Phil show. Cutrone has penned two books: national and New York Times’ bestseller “If You Have to Cry, Go Outside: And Other Things Your Mother Never Told You” and “Normal Gets You Nowhere,” released in May 2011 by HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins.

Deadline for entry is July 8, 2011. No purchase is necessary to compete in this contest. The winning entry will be made available on Kobo’s Facebook Page after being selected.

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29th June 2011

Adrenaline-Junkie Avatars Jump Without A Chute

stegersaurusStegersaurus has released a new title on Xbox Live Indie Games. Avatar Without A Chute is a flying Avatar Without A Chutegame – kind of. It’s actually a falling game. Players “toss” their avatars out into thin air and then let them fall to earth, collecting points on the way down. The object of the game is to be the first avatar to reach the ground. Now I have to try this game to see if my avatar will go splat, and how well it will splat. For some reason, I find the splatability of my avatar to be somewhat intriguing. There are no power-ups to collect, so riches are to be found in the number of points you can garner before hitting the ground.

Avatar Without A Chute features single player fun in offline mode while in online mode you can play with 2-4 friends. There is a free trial, or you can get the full game for 80 MS Points.

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29th June 2011

Ball-Hop Bowling Now On Android

renown entertainmentAndroid users now have a premium skee ball style game to call their own. Ball-Hop Bowling by Renown Entertainment has been customized for Android smart phones and tablets, previously available only on Apple iOS and Facebook.
ball hop bowling
Ball-Hop Bowling features high definition 3D graphics, fun ultra-realistic physics, tons of prizes, and standard/premium content to keep you coming back for more. Best of all, it’s FREE!

President James Lau notes “This arcade classic is a staple on mobile devices and we’re proud to offer this best of category experience for Android. Ball-Hop Bowling garnered near perfect user reviews and shot to the top of the Apple App Store charts in addition to being featured worldwide in its first day of release. The universal appeal on iOS is undeniable, and we hope Android users are equally excited to get this quality game in their collection at no charge.”

“The team obsessed over creating a faithful version of the real world counterpart. They measured and weighed the balls, played on a variety of machines, captured videos for reference, and tuned the physics until the game was exceptional.”

Don’t have an Android? Get it free for your Apple iOS device or play on Facebook and challenge your friends to compete for the highest score on the Ball-Hop Bowling leaderboards.

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29th June 2011

Frima Announces Awesome Summer Minis Bundle

frima studioFrima Studios has declared that today is officially the start of an “awesome” summer by announcing the “AWESOME Summer Minis Bundle,” a collection of Frima’s five best-selling PlayStation® mini titles, now available for a bundled price of $4.99 USD on the PlayStation® Store. The sale price is almost 70% off the regular combined price of these five titles. Through the epic realm of mythical Norse gods or the darkest corners of the galaxy, these five assorted games are sure to satisfy your never-ending taste for adventure. This one-of-a-kind-video-game-buffet includes premium titles like A Space Young ThorShooter for 2 Bucks!, Young Thor, Widgets Odyssey 1 and 2, and Zombie Tycoon, all for a 70% discount off the combined retail price.

The AWESOME Summer Minis Bundle features:

– A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks!
– Young Thor
– Widgets Odyssey
– Widgets Odyssey 2
– Zombie Tycoon

Can’t set your mind on a good game to buy? How ‘bout 5 of ‘em! With a platformer, shooter, real-time strategy and beat-em-up title, the Frima “AWESOME Summer Minis Bundle” contains action-packed games to suit any gamer. WARNING: extreme awesomeness may cause severe summer shortness.

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29th June 2011

Burn The City New From JoshOClock

joshoclockIn this action-packed shooter by independent Canadian developer JoshOClock, you play the role of an adorable creature born to an empty nest because your family has been kidnapped by humans! This is an outrage, and something must be done to avenge this deed! Off you go on a mission to seek revenge for your kidnapped siblings, and armed with nothing more than destructive and smoking-hot fireballs, you’re ready for some mayhem and slaughter!

Burn The City features not only an amazing 45 levels of high-polished action, but also incredibly intuitive controls – touch, drag and release. Similar in style to Angry Birds and Worms, this game will keep burn the cityyou addicted for hours, and includes explosive physics and Game Center support for the competitive players. At your aid to destroy all mankind you have your fireball attack, and by eating different colored YUMs that are gathered by destroying crates throughout the levels, you obtain 3 special attacks: the first is TNT, which turns the standard fireball into a green explosive shot! The second is “Sniper”, which gives better accuracy across far distances, and finally the third special attack is “nuke” (YES!), which unleashes a nuclear blast (oh yeah!!) when the screen is tapped! Go ahead! Download your personal copy of Burn This City, and get busy destroying humanity!

A free version of the game is already available on PC through Kongregate, and a version for the Android was released recently. The iOS version now available on the App Store is compatible with Apple iPhone®, Apple iPod touch® and Apple iPad® devices running iOS 3.0 or later. Burn the City is rated 9+ for Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence.

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29th June 2011

George Brown College Increases Commitment To Canadian Digital Media Development

George Brown CollegeAnne Sado, President of George Brown College, has announced that the college will be increasing its commitment to the digital media sector with its gaming development and design programs in a new learning environment at 333 King St. E.

The facility will also feature an industry incubator to bring together video gaming and digital media startups in Toronto with George Brown College students. Scheduled to open in September 2011, the incubator will provide 10 offices, between 100 and 150 square feet, for startups and small companies looking for a platform to grow their business in the heart of the city. By including industry innovators alongside students, the college hopes to create an environment that helps its learners experience real-world engagement to better prepare them for future employment and help emerging companies leverage the student resources to help them grow.

“The research we conducted on the feasibility of a video gaming incubator reveals a real need for more ESACapplied research and innovation – something our students and faculty have clearly been able to provide in other industries,” said Sado. “With the growth rate in the gaming sector in Ontario predicted to reach 31 per cent over the next three years, according to the Entertainment Software Association of Canada, George Brown College is an a perfect position to provide a leadership role in nurturing the talent in this industry.”

As part of George Brown College’s effort to contribute to the expansion of the digital media industry in the city, the George Brown College School of Design will take on the leadership of Digifest, a Toronto-based international festival celebrating innovation and digital creativity that was previously managed by the Design Exchange. The festival will run from October 26 to 30 and will be held in central locations OMDCthroughout the city.

Today’s announcements are based on a feasibility study conducted by George Brown and funded by the Ontario Media Development Corporation and the City of Toronto. The research conducted by the college and its partners uncovered a need for a video gaming incubator, which would provide:

  • Improved access to video gaming technology for small businesses and start-ups
  • ffice space in the downtown core, helping to create a gaming community within the city
  • nd applied research and field placement opportunities for George Brown College video game design and development studentsToronto

“An innovative economy requires planning and support that builds on four strategic pillars – infrastructure, a well trained workforce, knowledge and expertise, and strong partnerships,” said Councillor Shelley Carroll, City of Toronto (Ward 33 Don Valley East), and Vice Chair, Economic Development Committee. “The new video game incubator at George Brown College will support these pillars and accelerate the growth and development of the digital media cluster in the City of Toronto.”

“As a long-time supporter of the digital, interactive media industry in Ontario, OMDC has had a keen interest in the video game programs George Brown College has been delivering and the strong relationships the college has with its industry partners,” added Karen Thorne-Stone, President and CEO of OMDC. “We felt it was important to fund this research that added to our understanding of the needs of the video gaming community. We are excited that George Brown College has taken a leadership role in addressing the study’s recommendations. This will enhance the vibrancy of the video gaming cluster in Ontario.”

The introduction of the gaming incubator coincides with the addition of approximately 310 students in the video game design and development programs at George Brown College over the last three years. Once renovations are complete this summer, the video game design students and the businesses using the incubator will have access to industry leading facilities, including development kits for major video game consoles, hand-held devices and other peripherals and a three-dimensional scanner and printer. This technology will be introduced to the incubator a short while after its launch.

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29th June 2011

zerofone Hits New Milestone

zerofoneToronto start-up zerofone has passed the 20,000 download mark for its mobile phone app available from Apple’s App Store. To celebrate this milestone, zerofone is tripling its no-obligation free trial to 30 minutes of free calling for new customers. The free trial allows mobile calls to Canada, the U.S. and many international destinations.

After trying out the service, a new summer promotion will give zerofone customers who purchase a monthly North American calling package an entire month of free calling. Customers simply purchase the first month of calling any time during July 2011, and their second month of calling will be free.zerofone

“It’s been an incredible few months since our official launch in January,” says company President, Ben Rovet. “We’re seeing customers from all over the world take advantage of our service.”

zerofone gives users simple and low-cost access to long distance and roaming (tip: when traveling out of country, use WiFi to avoid roaming charges) calling from their iPhone, iPad and iPod touch using a combination of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology and traditional telecom networks for superior voice quality and reliability.

With zerofone, users can pay less than 1 cent per minute for North American long distance calls and under 2 cents for overseas calls to destinations such as India, China and most of Europe, without using any minutes from their cell phone provider. Canadian wireless carriers normally charge 40 cents per minute for North American long distance calls and 75 cents per minute or more for international calls.

“With roaming, it can work out to $1.50 per minute or more,” says Rovet. “Our service saves some people thousands of dollars per year. It’s really quite astounding.”

When asked what motivated him to start this company, Mr. Rovet said, “Canadian wireless consumers pay among the highest prices in the world for mobile service. We believe Canadians are entitled to more choices and we are leading the way with price, quality and service.”

Once the free trial period is over, users subscribe to one of zerofone’s low-cost calling packages, contract-free. Unlimited calling packages start at $6.99/month. Travel Packs, online phone numbers and other innovative features are also available.

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29th June 2011

Kryos Velocity Platform Now Available on Android

kyrosCalgary-based Kryos Systems has launched their rapid mobile application development platform, Velocity, in a version compatible with Android™ smartphones and tablets. According to a comScore report published in February, the Android platform is the leader in smartphone market share in the USA.

The Velocity platform has long helped businesses to create full-featured applications for the BlackBerry® platform and the addition of Android platform support allows applications created to operate across either type of device, making the Velocity software even more impactful for enterprise business looking for ways to increase efficiency.

Velocity will allow non-specialist developers to program custom applications for the Android platform, cutting the traditional time and costs associated with setting up mobile applications significantly.

Jeff Samis, Vice President of Product and Market Development at Kryos Systems said, “Velocity works by acting as an interface between much more common XML language and the various native languages that are traditionally used to write applications for smartphones. This means that businesses can use in-house staff, versus expensive and rare skills, to create their mobile applications for both the Blackberry and Android platforms. And they can do this in a time frame of weeks compared to months.”

“Our plans to launch on the Android platform have been ongoing for over a year now and we are very pleased to be offering the market place choice in application development.”

Applications built using the Velocity platform for Android smartphones and tablets will make full use of all of the features of the device, including the camera, calendar, address book, email, and others. Once installed on the smartphone, the applications created mesh seamlessly with the device’s own menus and widgets, providing businesses with the ability to give out of office mobile device user’s full access to information and systems in an intuitive interface.

Velocity features built-in security measures and encryption for all applications built using it, and operates even in those instances when there is no connection to a cell tower. As soon as a connection is made the application will process any work completed prior to losing connection. Battery life and network capacity is optimized through an efficient information caching system.

The new Velocity will run on Android tablets that use the Android 2.1 and higher operating system. This cross platform functionality means that a business needs only to create their application once to have it work on both BlackBerry and Android devices.

The release of Velocity for the Android platform coincides with a recent announcement from BlackBerry smartphone producers, Research In Motion, about plans to deploy a device management infrastructure to support Android and iOS smartphones. The solution is expected to incorporate secure device management for Android devices and other iOS based devices, all managed from a single web-based console. This important announcement from Research In Motion, the leader in enterprise mobility, means that businesses can much more easily manage individual devices coming into the enterprise.

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29th June 2011

TVO Launches My Canada Memory Game

TVOTVO has launched its first app for the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet. My Canada is a fun and engaging memory sequencing game just in time for Canada Day. Beginning today, My Canada is available as a free download for BlackBerry PlayBook on BlackBerry App World™. It is also available as an online game at TVOKids.com.

My Canada is the perfect game for parents who want to help their kids learn about Canada’s geography, and nurture their children’s sense of pride in their country. It helps kids ages 6-11 learn about the locations of the provinces and territories, the capital cities and Canada’s Great Lakes. At the same time, the game focuses on “working memory” which can help enhance important memory skills in kids.my canada

“We’re proud to announce the launch of TVO’s first app for the BlackBerry® PlayBook tablet,” says Lisa de Wilde, CEO. “My Canada is another example of the many ways TVO is using new digital media platforms to nurture important 21st century literacy skills and to complement classroom learning. My Canada makes learning about Canadian geography fun and accessible for kids.”

TVO’s My Canada memory game was designed with learning objectives that support the Ontario school curriculum and has been classroom and teacher tested and developed with TVO’s on-staff educator.

The introduction of TVO’s My Canada for BlackBerry PlayBook closely follows the recent launch of TVO’s two early learning mobile apps for BlackBerry® smartphones. Polka Dot Shorts and Flower Frenzy were downloaded over 250,000 times within the first two weeks of launching and recently held the number 2 and number 4 most downloaded positions on BlackBerry App World in the Education category.

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29th June 2011

Kohler Canada Taps Into Mobile Market With Catalogue App

kohler canadaKohler Canada is pleased to announce that its CDNCatalog App for iPhone and iPod touch is now available for free on the App Store. Created for designers, industry professionals and imaginative homeowners, the app allows users to explore and discover the complete Kohler Canada catalogue of over 27,000 KOHLER® products, along with videos, showroom and retailer locations and inspirational ideas.

“Intended to take full advantage of the iPhone and iPod touch, utilizing the aesthetic of the Kohler Canada website, the CDNCatalog App provides images, videos, product specifications, installation guides, pricing and locations in a useful and convenient manner,” says Donna Church, Manager of Marketing & Communications for Kohler Canada. “With a large following of industry professionals in Canada, we wanted to make it easier for them to work with clients who do not have access to showrooms or who are constantly on the go.”

“When homeowners decide to start a project, they are often overwhelmed by some of the small design details: Will it fit? What finish works best? kohler appHow do I install it? Does it suit the design?” says Kevin Fitzsimons, Fitzsimons Design Build. “With Kohler Canada’s CDNCatalog App, consumers can run through their checklist in the showroom, at home, or on the go. With such an intuitive design, the CDNCatalog provides easy access to product information and installation sheets, making any home project simple, efficient and more accurate.”

Key features include:

  • A product image gallery
  • The ability to search by product name and number
  • A GPS retail showroom locator
  • In depth product information including specification sheets, installation sheets, measurements and finish/colour options
  • The ability to share favourite products and design ideas with friends through email or on Twitter
  • A wide range of video content, including product spotlights, brand messaging, installation instructions and design inspiration.

 

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