We Create The Space Xbo x e Mag For Ideas‌ For XBOX > February edition
Edito r’s Co mme nt He llo and we lc o me to the firs t e ditio n o f The Xbo x e Mag – a lo o k into the c hang ing wo rld o f g aming and o the r c o ns o le c o nte nt. Eac h mo nth we ’ll lo o k to update yo u with the late s t fro m the wo rlds o f Xbo x, Plays tatio n, and Ninte ndo , whic h is rapidly c o lliding with the like s o f Go o g le , Amazo n and Apple as the plo t to o ffe r a ‘o ne -s to p s ho p’ fo r all yo ur me dia ne e ds thic ke ns . Like a fine wine , we ’re lo o king to mature The Xbo x e Mag with e ac h e ditio n, s o ple as e fe e d yo ur tho ug hts bac k to us (jo s e f.franc is @s mvg ro up.c o .uk). Ho pe yo u e njo y, The Xbo x Te am
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Gaming - a c hang ing marke t Xbox, Nintendo and Playstation are undergoing an evolution. No longer the reserve of the spotty, socially awkward, agoraphobic teenagers, the console is quickly becoming the hub of the living room, a vehicle of wider content provision – in the US 50% o f the late s t bre e d o f c o ns o le are lo c ate d in the living ro o m.
And with content like Netflix, ESPN, HBO and BBC iPlayer being available directly through the console, who can blame them? Co ns umptio n is o n the ris e , with be twe e n 14 – 33% o f c o ns ume rs ’ time s pe nt o n c o ns o le s de dic ate d to s tre aming s e rvic e s , depending on which console you look at.
Xbox, Nintendo and Playstation’s exploration of content partnerships show no signs of slowing, and with Google and Apple TV entering the content space, the $144billio n wo rldwide g aming marke t is testing new territory and finding new competitors.
3 Source: Nielsen, FT.com
Who are g ame rs ? In 2011, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) reported that the ave rag e ag e fo r a g ame r was no w 37 ye ars o ld – individuals from the first generation console days (Sega Megadrives, Nintendo SNES – remember those?) continue to buy. The gender distribution of console gamers shows 58 pe rc e nt o f g ame rs as male and 42 pe rc e nt fe male – a far cry from the classic ‘mom’s basement’ portrayal. And when you bring s o c ial g aming into the mix, these numbers flip around. Another stat - 71 percent of people age six to forty-nine in the U.S. played video games, with 55 pe rc e nt o f g ame rs playing o n the ir pho ne s o r mo bile de vic e s . What does this all mean? That brands have an opportunity to empower themselves within this engaging environment. Click on the brands below to see how they’ve activated in this space.
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Source: immediateconnection.com
Gaming and c o nte nt pro vis io n – the mo ve rs and s hake rs No longer a ‘first person shooter-box’ for aforementioned teens, the Xbox 360 (complete with motion and voice sensor ‘Kinect’ device) offers content from Netflix, HBO, BBC, and ESPN, social media, as well as gaming, all at a wave of 66m s o ld wo rldwide your hand. The console that merged motion and home gaming. The Nintendo Wii brought the console to the living room with its gaming family favourites. Not bad for a spot of iPlayer too. 90m s o ld wo rldwide
42 m s o ld wo rldwide
Blu-ray, web-browsing, and motiongaming facilitated by a controllercum-lava lamp, the PS3 may be a little long in the tooth but its still got some nice features.
Built into internet-ready TVs, available as a separate box, or just existing as a website, these guys have access to the likes of Youtube, iTunes, Netflix, and Warner Bros., across a range of your inhome and handheld devices. 5
Ne ws he adline s •
Microsoft launch a version of Kinect, their gesture and voice sensor on the Xbox, to work with Windows based PCs (and this time it works from 40cms away)
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Playstation launch new handheld ‘Vita’ in Europe, rivalling Nintendo’s 3DS
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Netflix has arrived in the UK with shows from BBC, and films from studios such as Lionsgate, Miramax and MGM
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2m strong online streaming service LoveFilm strikes deals with BBC and ITV to pinch programming ahead of the Netflix invasion
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CES 2012 - LG housing Google TV, and Samsung, LG and Lenovo ditch controls for voice and hand gestures, and even facial recognition
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Voice and motion activated content - News Corp’s FOX, WSJ and IGN to launch voice and motion activated apps on the Xbox LIVE platform
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Source: vgchartz, businessinsider, FT.com
Online Co nte nt Wars Launched in 2002 as a DVD rental service named ‘DVDsOnTap’, LoveFilm is the UK’s biggest online subscription service and DVD rental service boasting 2 million users. 20m subscribers worldwide
More than 2b hours watched in Q4 2011
J anuary however saw the introduction of Netflix to the UK, and with it a mad scramble from both to secure programming from the likes of MGM, the BBC, and Lionsgate.
Hollywood studios won’t make much from these £6 a month subscription services vs. selling a DVD, but with DVD rentals taking a dive in favour of online based services, change may be on the horizon.
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Co ns o le s in the ho us e ho ld
As the ‘first-mover’ in the family gaming arena, perhaps not surprising that the Wii is the more likely to be found in the living room. Expect Xbox and Playstation to catch-up however as content partnerships blossom, and uptake of their motion peripherals increases.
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Clo ud Gaming Think video on demand for games. This provides access to games without the need for a console, largely making your computer specs unimportant – the processing is done elsewhere. Available for on your TV, PC, Laptop, Smartphone or Tablet, all you have to do is download the app or program. In fact, OnLive (prominent cloud gaming service with over 1 million subscribers in the UK alone) will be integrated in the next Google TV, and LG are planning to include their own version (Gaikai) in the near future. A serious threat to console manufacturers and retailers? Not yet. Without the processing power of a console, the picture quality isn’t all there, and of course you need a reliable and fast internet connection. One to watch...
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Call of Duty Mode rn Warfare release S o it we nt o n s ale bac k in No ve mbe r, but Call o f Duty: Mo de rn Warfare 3 is the big g e s t de but o f all time , s e lling 6.5m c o pie s o n launc h day.
The $775m firs t five day S ale s by far e xc e e de d the big g e s t film o f the ye ar: Harry Po tte r and the De athly Hallo w s Part 2 ($202m).
And fo r a Ho llywo o d s c ale launc h, a Ho llywo o d c as t to launc h the g ame . If yo u have n’t alre ady s e e n it, c lic k the imag e abo ve to s e e Jo nah Hill and S am Wo rthing to n play the ro le o f ‘The Ve te ran and ‘The N00b’. 10
Source: www.vgchartz.com
Hac k o f the mo nth
People love reprogramming Xbox’s motion and voice sensor Kinect to do all sorts of things. Courtesy of Paddy Whitnall, probably the first ever motion activated skate board. Click the image above to play.
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10 years of Xbox •
Xbo x Live no w has o ve r 40 millio n me mbe rs
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Kine c t be c ame the fas te s t s e lling g adg e t o f all time las t ye ar, s e lling o ve r 8 millio n units in 60 days
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Ove r 20 millio n us e rs lo g o n to Xbo x Live e ve ry day
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The Xbo x 360 is the o nly c o ns o le in U.S . his to ry to inc re as e YOY in e ve ry ye ar o f its life - that's o ve r 5 ye ars o f c o ns tant g ro wth
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The Xbo x 360's attac h rate is 9 g ame s pe r s ys te m in the US , and o ve r 10 in the UK
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The re are o ve r 4.6 millio n Xbo x Live me mbe rs us ing the Ne tflix applic atio n
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Aro und 100 do wnlo ads o f g aming and e nte rtainme nt c o nte nt fro m Xbo x Live Marke tplac e take plac e e ve ry s e c o nd
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The re are o ve r 4.6 millio n Xbo x Live me mbe rs us ing the Ne tflix applic atio n
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Source: www,vgchartz.com
S ale s fig ure s True to fo rm, Plays tatio n re mains s tro ng in the po s t Chris tmas pe rio d. 1 s t fo r an 8 th s traig ht we e k, the PS 3 was c o ns is te ntly be lo w its two c o mpe tito rs in the le ad up to Chris tmas . NOTE – c hart o ppo s ite de pic ts s ale s vs . pe ne tratio n. Glo bally the Ninte ndo Wii le ads .
COD Mo d e rn Warfare c o ntinue s to g o g re at g uns o n the Xbo x 3 mo nths afte r launc h. Ninte ndo hang in the g lo bal to p10 thro ug h 3DS title s (bo ls te re d by s tro ng APAC s uppo rt), with PS 3’s late s t title Tw is te d Me tal taking the to p s po t. 13
Source: www,vgchartz.com
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