Village Gamer

iPerceptions Inc., a leading provider of web-focused Voice of Customer (VoC) analytics, today announced the expansion of its successful 4Q Free product offering to a family of four products. For the first time, companies can choose from a cost-effective, yet sophisticated suite of online analytics tools that analyze individual customer experiences based on the combination of VoC and Google Analytics (GA) data. The 4Q suite includes Facebook and Twitter links, automatic alerts when significant changes occur within the data and global industry comparisons from over 6000 websites across 35 industry verticals.

The 4Q product suite is a simple-to-deploy Software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution and includes the original 4Q Free version, which was developed in collaboration with Avinash Kaushik, a noted web analytics author and blogger. The suite has been expanded to include: 4Q Basic, 4Q Plus and 4Q Premium.

“Limited time, resources and budgets have made it difficult for many companies to take advantage of Voice of Customer analytics,” said Claude Guay, president and CEO of iPerceptions. “Because the price is right, many companies have adopted free web analytics tools such as Google Analytics to answer the what and 4Q Free to answer the why. But the 4Q suite offers companies of all sizes a low-cost, simple-to-deploy solution that combines the what and the why for more accurate and complete customer analysis.”

While the overall premise around asking the four most important survey questions remains the same as 4Q Free, the 4Q suite offers the following innovations:

* Individual Behavioral & Attitudinal Analysis – Allows companies to analyze individual customer experiences, including their open-ended feedback, based on the combination of VoC and GA data. This multi-perspective, session-level analysis provides a broader and more accurate view of the customer experience, which often unveils surprising insights and requires a different company response. Read the rest of this entry »

Digital Leisure Inc. announced today the upcoming launch of BrainDead 13 on the AppStore, designed exclusively for your iPhone® and iPod Touch®. Following in the footsteps of Don Bluth’s classic Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace, BrainDead 13 adds the ability to fully control where you’ll go throughout this classically animated interactive adventure.

“This game has a massive cult following.” says Paul Gold, Supervising Producer. “Fans have been begging us to re-release it for years, and we think the iPhone is perfect format to celebrate the 15th anniversary of its original release.”

BrainDead 13 has you taking on the role of Lance, a young computer expert who is called to fix a computer at a bizarre and dilapidated castle. After repairing the large super-computer within the castle, you learn of Dr. Nero Neurosis’ diabolical plan to take over the world! Discovering the secret plan sends you on the run, being chased around the castle by Fritz, a psychotic servant of Dr. Neurosis – an evil disembodied brain. You must guide Lance through the deadly and mysterious castle to defeat Dr. Neurosis and save the world from his evil plans!

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRit60k1ONo]

Digital Leisure plans to follow up BrainDead 13 with a variety of classic arcade games for the iPhone and iPod Touch titles in the coming months. BrainDead 13 will be available this Friday October 8th for only $2.99 on the AppStore!

Vancouver Film School has announced on their blog that Peter Jin Hong, Google’s User Experience Designer in Search Engineering and Mobile, has joined the Digital Design program’s advisory board.

As part of his work in innovation and research in Mountain View, Peter focuses on conceptualizing and rapid prototyping next-generation applications. His past roles include Group Creative Director at the world-leading interactive agency Blast Radius and National Creative Director at Tribal DDB Canada. He’s also a graduate of the program (from way back in 1996) which gives him firsthand insight into the VFS experience.

“His empathetic approach to humanistic design greatly enhances our curriculum as we continually strive to keep pace with our evolving industry,” says Head of Digital Design Amber Bezahler. “Peter is a true user experience expert and a role model for what our graduates can accomplish.”

Select industry professionals from around the world are invited to join VFS’s advisory boards. As lifelines to the industry, members provide the next generation of designers with a vital link to the professional world through guest lectures, project mentorship, portfolio advising, and potential internship and employment opportunities.

“There have been many good mentors in my life,” he says. “Mentoring in turn, and seeing people realize their potential, is both a privilege and source of joy for me. The successes I’ve been a part of really come down to people, their stories, and inspiring collaborations – much of that started at VFS for me.”

Montreal’s MEGA Brands has entered into a global licensing agreement to develop construction toys based on the new Cartoon Network boys’ action series, Generator Rex. The global partnership marks the first time the two companies have partnered on product development, and will bring a full line of toys to international markets through a three-year agreement. MEGA Brands’ Generator Rex construction toy line is scheduled to launch in the construction toy aisles in the U.S. in fall 2011, and will roll out in additional territories thereafter.

“There is a tremendous amount of excitement and momentum surrounding Generator Rex and the addition of MEGA Brands to our consumer products offering presents a great opportunity for the brand from a global perspective,” said Christina Miller, senior vice president, CNE. “Construction toys are such a crucial element of how boys play and we’re excited to work closely with MEGA Brands to bring Rex’s world and abilities to life for our fans.”

“We’re very excited to have this exclusive opportunity to partner with Cartoon Network Enterprises and create the first construction toy line for their newest action series, Generator Rex,” said Vic Bertrand, Chief Innovation Officer of MEGA Brands. “We look forward to bringing Rex and his powers to life through Mega Bloks and offering fans an action-packed building adventure.”

The newest action-adventure original series from Cartoon Network, Generator Rex is created by Man of Action (creators of the Ben 10 franchise) and produced at Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, CA. The series follows Rex, a 15-year-old typical teenager with abnormal powers – including the ability to make his fists the size of boulders, sprout a jet pack out of his back and turn his legs into a lightning-fast motorcycle, among other talents – as he uses his superhuman abilities to help fight mutant creatures known as E.V.O.s (Exponentially Variegated Organism).

In the U.S., new episodes from the series debut on Cartoon Network on Fridays at 8:30 p.m. (ET/PT), with replays on Saturday mornings, and the network has committed to at least 40 episodes of the series. The brand is also supported by a massive online machine that includes the Nanite Master game featured at CartoonNetwork.com that has had more than 6.9 million game plays since its launch in March (source: Omniture SiteCatalyst data), as well as the show’s page and a Facebook fan page.

Bell Canada today announced its purchase of Hypertec Availability Services‘ hosting division, the leading top-tier data hosting provider in Québec. The acquisition provides Bell with more than 100,000 square feet (9,290 square metres) of hosting space in a state-of-the-art Montréal data centre, enhancing Bell’s ability to provide co-location and managed data centre services for corporate and public sector clients.

“Bell’s acquisition of our newest data centre builds on our National Data Hosting Services portfolio’s ability to deliver secure and reliable mission-critical communications services to government and corporate clients in our data centres and across our high-performance fibre networks – while also enabling the next generation of cloud computing services,” said Stéphane Boisvert, President, Bell Business Markets. “It’s an acquisition that underscores Bell’s commitment to investing in broadband networks and services and to the continued expansion of Québec’s information technology infrastructure.” Read the rest of this entry »

San Francisco-based social game developer TheBroth announced today that Victoria, BC mobile and social media game monetization company Playboost, a subsidiary of NeverBlue, has developed Gamebar, a custom game-play monetization toolbar for Barn Buddy, a top game on Facebook with 1.8 million monthly users and the #1 game on Hi5. The new Barn Buddy “Gamebar” toolbar was officially launched on September 3, 2010. The toolbar is uniquely designed to add new income streams for TheBroth beyond revenue share off of search feeds, plus increase Barn Buddy’s user engagement.

“With Barn Buddy, TheBroth is clearly at the top of their game and has captured the imagination and market share of Facebook fans,” said Chris Dykstra, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Playboost. “It’s exciting to work with a group of individuals that challenges us to find new solutions for revenue and user engagement. Their attitude and drive underscores why TheBroth is a leader in Facebook farm games.”

The newly created Gamebar is even further engaging its most avid fans. “I find even I‘m playing the game more! We look forward to increased monetization with Playboost’s Gamebar,” said Markus Weichselbaum, CEO at TheBroth.

In addition to Playboost’s successful Gamebar product, the studio recently launched their Mobile Offer Platform which allows Android and iPhone game developers to monetize their free to play games.

The bookshelves at 155 public school libraries across Canada will now receive a much needed boost in books through the second annual Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Adopt a School program. From September 12th to October 2nd, Indigo, Chapters and Coles stores across Canada “adopted” public schools in their communities. Through the generous donations of customers and employees school libraries were rejuvenated with funds raised by in-store activities and donations.

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Ahoy, mateys! Global video game publisher 505 Games and developer Artificial Mind & Movement (A2M) today announced the latest downloadable chapter for Naughty Bear is available now for Xbox LIVE® Arcade and PlayStation® Network. The new pirate-themed Chapter 9 pits the naughtiest bear around in a bid to lay siege to the Island of Perfection with even more mischievous action, including all-new characters, costumes and challenges.

Filled with exclusive hidden treasures, deadly weapons and brutal buccaneers, Chapter 9 serves up four new challenges to swashbuckle while taking up arms against baddie bears and their leader, Admiral Giggles, as well as The Pirates and their leader, The Great Bear Beard.

To commend their efforts in combat, Chapter 9 players can dress Naughty in his own version of the Pirate Bear costume or even assume the identity of The Great Bear Beard, find two new hats and collect the lethal cutlass, with unique ultra-kill capabilities.

Naughty Bear is available now for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and also for iPhone & iPod Touch through the Apple App Store for $2.99 CAD. The downloadable Chapter 9 is available now on Xbox LIVE Arcade for 400 MS points and on PlayStation Network for the equivalent of $4.99 USD.

Sierra Wireless today announced a multi-year strategic agreement for the company to provide M2M (machine-to-machine) Services Management for Telus. Telus will integrate the Sierra Wireless AirVantage™ Services Platform into their network operations to provide M2M customers with online access to a comprehensive suite of M2M service creation, delivery and management capabilities, making it simpler and faster to bring M2M services to market and opening new service opportunities for Telus and its partners.

ABI Research forecasts M2M connection revenue in Canada to grow at a rate of 26 per cent per year from 2010 to 2015, to a total of $575 million (M2M Market Forecasts, ABI Research, Q3 2010, Total Cellular M2M Connection Revenue by Region, World Market Forecast 2007 – 2015 ). M2M services cover a wide range of applications, including remotely collecting vehicle data, remotely monitoring equipment such as pipelines and wind turbines, wireless point-of-sale devices, and connecting innovative consumer devices such as e-book readers, personal navigation devices, and cameras. Read the rest of this entry »

Waves: Survivor, the first game released by independent developer Renown Entertainment, is now available for US $1.99 on the Apple App Store for the iPhone® and iPod touch®, also compatible with the iPad®.

Help our hero Johnny Calm survive the perils of being lost at sea. Armed with only a paddle and bucket in his trusty rowboat, Johnny must fend off deadly sea creatures and overcome huge waves to make it past each day. Not everything is as grim as it seems with mermaids to befriend, deep-sea treasures to collect, big combos to score, and a special power up to extend his life. Stay alert or you’ll find Johnny swimming with the fishes! Can you survive?

With Waves: Survivor, the team at Renown seamlessly combined old school game play with new school technology [water physics] for a truly innovative and unique experience. Whether you play to beat your own score or compete against friends and the rest of the world for bragging rights, it can become very addictive. The team hopes that gamers everywhere have as much fun playing it as they did creating it.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHDKaVCs6-4]

Guest stars Carolina Stephanie and Alicia Meek provide the look and voice acting for the mermaids in addition to a dramatic music score by Hollywood composer Jason Livesay.

Waves: Survivor features leaderboards (via Facebook and Twitter), interactive water physics, continuous survival gameplay, touch and accelerometer controls, collectible items and many more.

Toronto’s BlueCat Networks, the IPAM Intelligence™ company, has won a prestigious Pilot Award at the 2010 American Security Challenge (ASC). Under the auspices of the National Security Initiative (NSI), the ASC is the largest U.S. competition devoted to bringing the latest and best security technologies to market for homeland security – making it the center of gravity for security technology stakeholders looking to improve long-term U.S. national security. Pilot award selection by ArcSight, a leading global provider of cybersecurity and compliance solutions, underscores BlueCat Networks’ position as the IP Address Management (IPAM) leader in the U.S. government sector.

The ASC is focused on increasing the visibility of innovative technologies so that they can more quickly reach both the public and commercial marketplace. The ASC Pilots provide challengers with the opportunity to have their technologies thoroughly tested by qualified potential customers who have ready contract vehicles and funding. These customers may include various groups within the Department of Defense, Fortune 500 and members of the Intelligence Community. By quickly identifying solutions to mission critical and highly visible issues, the ASC public/private partnerships are helping to secure U.S. citizens, U.S. assets and the U.S. economy.

“BlueCat’s innovative solutions are exactly the type of technology the customer believes can deliver real and immediate security advancements today,” said ASC Chairman Roger London. “We don’t simply award demos just to benchmark technology performance, but rather we set up true pilots with qualified and engaged customers to accelerate the introduction and ultimate deployment of valuable technology by connecting innovative vendors like BlueCat with legitimate customers who might not otherwise meet,” London continued. “Technology is wasted and our national security is unnecessarily exposed if great technology stays on the shelf – so, expediting the adoption and deployment of valuable security technologies, such as BlueCat’s, helps safeguard our technology networks protecting America’s citizens, assets and economy.”
Read the rest of this entry »

Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that EA Sports™ NBA Jam from EA Canada is now available in stores worldwide. Available for the Wii™, EA Sports NBA Jam is a revival of one of the most popular and culturally influential arcade basketball games ever made. EA Sports NBA Jam delivers vintage NBA Jam gameplay, combined with all-new features that deliver a fresh new take on the classic game.

“We are really excited about the launch of NBA Jam,” says Peter Moore, president, EA Sports. “This is one of the most anticipated games of the year, and judging by the overwhelmingly positive reactions of the people who have played it, as well as the great critical acclaim it has already earned, NBA JAM is on fire.”

With two distinct game modes: Classic Campaign and Remix Tour, EA Sports NBA Jam offers something for everyone. In Classic Campaign, players can take a trip down memory lane, individually or cooperatively with a friend, as they play through all the teams in the NBA in a worst to first ladder tournament. In Remix Tour, players will be faced with a new twist on the traditional NBA Jam experience. From boss battles against some of the NBA’s greatest legends, to half-court game modes with distinct challenges and winning conditions, players will be taken through an NBA Jam experience that, while completely unique to the basketball videogame genre, is classic arcade hoops at its best.

EA Sports NBA Jam has been rated E for Everyone. In addition to the Wii version, EA SPORTS NBA JAM will be available as a standalone product for the Xbox 360® and the PlayStation®3 in time for the holidays.

Electronic Arts Inc. is also very pleased to announce that EA Sports™ FIFA 11 has once again experienced a record-breaking launch. Based on internal estimates, FIFA 11 has shattered sales records for the title with 2.6 million copies sold through at retail in Europe and North America through Saturday, October 2. FIFA 11 is the fastest selling sports game ever and the title is off to its best start ever in markets around the world, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and North America.

EA Sports also announced that FIFA 11 Ultimate Team, one of the most played, dynamic and connected modes within the FIFA franchise, will now be available for free (Restrictions and conditions apply. Please see back of pack for details) on the PlayStation®3 and Xbox 360® this November. Read the rest of this entry »

The federal government’s use of handheld communications devices and its practices for disposing of unneeded paper documents and surplus computers could expose the personal information of Canadians to unauthorized disclosure, Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart has warned.

The findings, stemming from two separate privacy audits conducted by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC), were highlighted in the organization’s 2009-2010 annual report on the Privacy Act, tabled in Parliament today. The Act applies to federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations.

“Our audits turned up some disturbing gaps in the privacy policies and practices of government institutions,” Commissioner Stoddart said. “Whether they’re using a BlackBerry, shredding old papers or disposing of outdated computer equipment, public servants need to know that the security of people’s personal data is a top priority.”

The annual report examines how the government’s holdings of personal data are affected by technology and considers the impact of full-body airport scanners and other national security measures on the privacy rights of Canadians. The report also summarizes key investigations into privacy complaints and data breaches that the Office conducted under the Privacy Act in 2009-2010.

“Considering the vast amounts of personal information on Canadians that the government holds, problems are relatively rare,” the Commissioner acknowledged. But, she noted, the data that the government collects, for purposes such as taxation, income support, the correctional system and international travel, is highly sensitive. Any unauthorized collection, use or disclosure of such data could therefore have serious consequences.

“When it comes to safeguarding the personal information entrusted to it, the government of Canada must always be held to the very highest standards of account.”

Here are some highlights of today’s reports:

* Wireless audit: Of five federal entities examined, none had fully assessed the threats and risks inherent in wireless communications. Gaps in policies and/or practices resulted in weak password protection for smart phones and inadequate encryption for Wi-Fi networks and data stored on mobile devices. Shortcomings were also noted in the disposal of surplus handheld devices and the use of PIN-to-PIN messaging, a form of direct communication between two smart phones that is vulnerable to interception. Read the rest of this entry »

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) today announced the appointment of Catalina Briceño to the position of Director, Industry and Market Trends. In this newly created role, Ms. Briceño will ensure that the CMF’s policies for supporting the production of Canadian television and digital media content are aligned with emerging trends and developments in the industry in Canada and internationally. She will monitor key trends and developments in terms of emerging technologies; business models and production financing; and regulation in order to provide the CMF with market intelligence to develop effective policies.

With over 13 years of experience in the audiovisual and new media industry, Ms. Briceño comes to the CMF from Salambo Productions, where she helped build the strategy and business model behind the internationally acclaimed, multiplatform project Têtes à claques as Producer and Director of Operations. She began her career in 1997 when she founded Caliope Communications Inc., which developed, coordinated financing for, and produced audiovisual content using evolving new media technologies, from digital visual effects to 3D animation to convergent web applications. Over the years, she consulted for various private and public funds and instructed a number of workshops through INIS on new media financing for audiovisual students and professionals. She is regularly invited to speak at conferences about the challenges and opportunities linked to using web and interactive applications in the entertainment sector.

Until joining the CMF, Ms. Briceño served as Vice Chair of the Board of the Regroupement des producteurs multimédia (RPM). In 2008, she received the Prix Séville de la Relève from the Association of Women in Film, Television, and New Media.

Ms. Briceño will join the CMF on October 25, 2010.