Jamdat

QUICKLINKS: Rumor: Sony PlayStation phone; Jamdat co-founders leave EA; Much more...

Mon, 11 Sep 2006 20:01:35 -0400

Rumor: Sony is working on a PlayStation phone. Well, at least the Apple iPhone will have some competition. Blog

Jamdat co-founders leave EA. Blog

Vivendi Games acquires mobile game developer Centerscore. Release

Most London theater patrons want their phones jammed. Article

BusineSMS launches MercuryXMS Mobile DRM SDK. Web site

Handango scores $60 million in funding. Blog

Editor's Corner: Selling games and getting paid

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 20:01:39 -0400

In a recent interview, EA Executive Producer Travis Boatman spent quite a bit of time talking about mobile content distribution challenges. Boatman said EA is "doing all these great things with the products, but yet the method by which they're delivered to the consumer still isn't really evolving in the same way." I completely agree.

Boatman leaves most of the responsibility for distribution at the feet of the operators, but concedes that "there's going to be a growth in off-deck portals." Readers may recall that last month EA SVP Mitch Lasky appeared to be announcing a plan for EA to take it's games off-deck, before retracting his statements amid clearly more attention than Lasky intended.

As I said at the time, there's no reason that carriers should wield this much control over the distribution of mobile content. Even EA Mobile--which as Jamdat was an outspoken supporter of carrier portals--is eying off-deck revenue. It's only a matter of time. - Eli

Interview: EA's Lasky on mobile gaming

Mon, 22 May 2006 20:01:38 -0400

Mitch Lasky, SVP of mobile games at Electronic Arts (and former CEO of JAMDAT), hopes mobile gaming is the cure for EA's slumping PC sales and rising development costs. Lasky says EA will produce 57,000 retail units of mobile games this year (that's about 35 game titles customized for each provider and localized for each region), though not all of them will sell immediately. According to Lasky, mobile gaming is a "catalog business" and EA makes more than 80 percent of its revenue from older games. Interview

Editor's Corner: Game Developers Conference 2006

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 19:01:40 -0500

Electronic Arts SVP Mitch Lasky (formerly the chief of JAMDAT), opened GDC Mobile yesterday with a great keynote speech. EA is the 800-lb. gorilla of the PC and console gaming world, and the company's recent acquisition of JAMDAT makes it clear that EA plans to be a major player in the mobile gaming market. EA plans to release classic mobile games like Tetris and ports of popular PC and console games. For example, EA intends to release a mobile version of Spore, the anticipated new game from Sim City creator Will Wright.

Lasky bluntly told the audience of game developers that "there are too many bad games" being offered by carriers. He fears that an oversupply of poor games could lead to an "Atari 2600" type of problem that could turn off consumers. He blamed carriers for accepting too many games into their deck. The commentary during the carrier's panel later that day suggests that too many choices and inconsistent quality hurts sales and angers customers. Lasky also challenged the mobile gaming industry on the lack of connected, multiplayer games. I can't agree more. Despite the advances made by platforms like Nokia's SNAP Mobile, there is a shocking lack of social, networked games on what is an inherently networked device.

Finally, Lasky took on the "unpleasant shopping experience" that many consumers encounter if they want to buy a game. I think this is probably the single biggest obstacle for the entire mobile content industry. Despite a lot of hand-wringing and hundreds of products and services designed to make the process easier, purchasing content on a mobile phone is far too difficult and inconsistent for consumers. Lasky also warned carriers not to disrupt the revenue chain by squeezing game publishers. Game publishing "is not the ringtone business," he said. "We actually make stuff." - Eli

P.S. It's not too late to RSVP for tonight's FierceDeveloper party, Shaken Not Stirred. It's located at Scores, just a few blocks from the San Jose convention center. Hope to see you there!

EA buys JAMDAT for $680M

Mon, 12 Dec 2005 19:01:38 -0500

Electronic Arts (EA), the 800-lb. gorilla of the video game world, has purchased JAMDAT, the mobile gaming firm best known for Tetris, Bejeweled, and Doom, for $680 million. Some analysts believe EA overpaid for JAMDAT--after all, mobile games are only a $2 billion slice of the $30 billion video games market--but EA seems to be banking on heavy growth predictions for mobile games. The deal also puts EA in a position to quickly create mobile versions of its "franchise" games like Madden and Need for Speed. EA is expected to release 15 to 20 mobile titles this year. As part of the deal, JAMDAT chief Mitch Lasky will replace John Batter as head of EA's mobile division. Analyst reactions | Conference call transcript

Editor's Corner: Spotlight on Jamdat

Mon, 15 Aug 2005 20:01:40 -0400

Jamdat's size, licensing properties, and strategy of expansion via acquisition make it a very closely watched company. There was, therefore, significant speculation surrounding the company's second-quarter earnings, which were released last Thursday.

Jamdat posted revenue of $19.3 million, which is up 128 percent from the same period a year ago. Unfortunately the company missed Wall Street's earnings estimate and the stock plunged 25 percent. Jamdat was also required to file documents detailing some of its past acquisitions, most notably the $137 million purchase of Blue Lava Wireless, which gave Jamdat exclusive 15-year rights to wireless versions of Tetris.

Despite problems on the Street, Jamdat will remain a major force in mobile gaming; but true gaming giants, like Electronic Arts and Microsoft, are beginning to move into the space and, according to The Motley Fool, Jamdat's best bet may be to sell out. Indeed, the company is rumored to be for sale, with potential suitors that include EA, Microsoft (for the XBox division, MSN, or the mobile division), and News Corp.'s new Fox Interactive Media. - Eli

EA signs deal with Verizon, Sprint

Mon, 18 Jul 2005 20:01:38 -0400

Electronic Arts has agreed to launch its first round of mobile titles via Verizon Wireless and Sprint. EA says the deals will probably be worth $25 million. The titles include mobile games for popular EA franchises like Madden and NBA Live. There will also be a special version of Need for Speed for Verizon V-CAST subscribers. EA currently has a relationship with mobile development house I-Play, and the gaming giant is rumored to be looking at an acquisition in the mobile space, namely JAMDAT and Superscape. Article

Rumor Mill: EA to acquire Jamdat

Mon, 11 Jul 2005 20:01:38 -0400

Jamdat's stock was up yesterday due to rumors that gaming giant Electronic Arts is considering a takeover. An EA spokeswoman declined to comment. One analyst said the acquisition would be based on "the primarily licensed nature of Jamdat's assets." Article

Jamdat to create mobile Doom

Mon, 23 May 2005 20:01:36 -0400

Jamdat has signed on to port Doom, the classic 1994 shoot-em-up, to mobile phones. The release is timed to coincide with the release of DOOM: The Movie. Article