Coming soon to Facebook — more action, battle games

Facebook is spearheading the launch of 10 high-quality games created by third-party developers in 2013 that squarely target so-called hardcore gamers.By Malathi Nayak  When nWay began a trial of its dark, sci-fi combat game ChronoBlade on Facebook last year, the San Francisco-based startup felt sure it had a hit on its hands. “First of all, what comes is, ‘Wow, I had no idea you could actually do a game of this quality on Facebook,’” said Dave Jones, Chief Creative Officer of nWay, who has worked on Grand Theft Auto and Diablo. Then came some resistance: Jones admits some potential investors and partners questioned how an action-focused game with slick graphics can play to a Facebook audience more accustomed to Farmville and other less time-consuming casual games. Others wondered how the game — which launches this spring — would gain significant users and revenue on the social network. But Facebook Inc is betting nWay and a clutch of other developers this year can extend console-style action games beyond Microsoft Corp’s Xbox or Sony Corp’s PlayStation onto the world’s largest social network. Facebook is spearheading the launch of 10 high-quality games created by third-party developers in 2013 that squarely target so-called hardcore gamers, an atypical audience overlooked thus far against the wealth of family-friendly offerings like Zynga Inc’s Farmville that now dominate the social network’s gaming landscape. The effort, which began late last year but will accelerate in 2013, is part of Facebook’s ongoing objective of making sure its 1bn-plus users log in and spend more time on the network, which in turn boosts ad revenue. Facebook also takes a cut of its applications’ revenue. Facebook’s push into action and battle games follows a meeting in January between companies that make games like “first-person shooters” and Vice President Joe Biden to look for ways to curb gun violence in the wake of the Connecticut school shootings. Based on the console gaming industry experience, hardcore gamers — typically men 18 to 30 years old — spend more time and effort to master fast-paced games such as first-person shooters (Microsoft’s Halo) or real-time strategy games (Activision Blizzard’s StarCraft). “You’ll see a whole set of games hitting in the next two quarters in particular and throughout the year that really start to redefine what people think of Facebook games,” Sean Ryan, head of game partnerships at Facebook said in an interview. Facebook will embrace games from “casual all the way up through first-person shooters, massively multiplayer online games, real-time strategy games — all those types of more core player-versus-player games.” Just as hardcore gamers interact online and form clans in multiplayer games on console game networks like Xbox LIVE, Facebook can be that social layer needed to foster such gaming communities that help popularise titles, Jones said. Over a quarter of Facebook’s 1.06bn monthly active users play games, one of the largest gaming communities in the industry, and the social network hopes that can grow. Facebook also aims to make more revenue from games. Revenue from the area was flat in the fourth quarter from a year ago, the company said last week without providing details. The 8-year-old social network takes a 30% revenue share from game developers who offer their product free but then charge for virtual goods — like ammunition and power boosts. Last week, Facebook’s Chief Financial Officer David Ebersman told analysts on a post-earnings conference call that its “games ecosystem continues to show healthy signs of diversification” and suggested that games revenue would grow with increasing user engagement. To grow its gaming business, Facebook has invested time and resources to work with developers since the summer to bring titles like u4iA’s first-person shooter Offensive Combat and Plaruim’s real-time strategy game Stormfall: Age of War alive, Ryan said. “It doesn’t mean we’re walking away from other games, but there’s no question our focus for 2013 much of it will be about becoming a better platform for core gamers and developers who make those games.” To help users discover them, Facebook added new action and strategy games categories on its App Center that also shows you friends from your list playing those games. It brought back notification messages from game apps — a feature that had been removed because users found them annoying — with certain restrictions that stop developers from spamming a gamer. Developers also rely on word-of-mouth publicity and ads on Facebook’s advertising platform to draw in prospective gamers. Stormfall has a player base of 4.5mn and hardcore games were proving to be far more lucrative, said Gabi Shalel, chief marketing officer Of Tel Aviv, Israel-based Plarium. “Hardcore gamers pay more, play more and generate higher average revenue per user than traditional casual games.” Kixeye, which makes the warfare-strategy game War Commander, said its gamers spend 20 times more than players of social games, helping it stay profitable over the past three years. Going forward, nWay’s Jones says Facebook must have a defining title that comes along that establishes it as a hardcore gaming spot for gamers. “Like Super Mario did for Nintendo or Halo on Microsoft, I think it just takes one title to come along, sort of as a benchmark to legitimise the whole thing,” he said. — ReutersThe smartphone case files

By Erin Geiger SmithThe smartphone patent wars have lit up courtrooms around the world. Next up: the smartphone case wars. The makers of protective cases that shield cell phones from coffee spills and sticky-fingered toddlers are entangled in countless lawsuits seeking to protect their designs. The fights come as the mobile accessories market has gone upscale with some cases made by luxury designers costing more than the phones they cover. Some cases are billed as virtually destruction-proof, said to protect precious electronics from crushing blows or cresting waves. Smartphones themselves are at the heart of a global patent fight, with Apple Inc battling South Korean giant Samsung Electronics Co over the design of the iPhone and iPad. But now similar fights are escalating over what swaddles the gadgets, as the smartphone case market has become a roughly $1bn annual industry, according to NPD Group, a market research firm. More than 100mn Apple and Samsung phones were shipped in the most recent quarter, making for more demand. The damage claims in the case design fights are tiny compared with the smartphone wars, but the lawsuits could help spur a shakeout in a crowded market. The biggest industry players sell their products at Apple and AT&T Inc retail stores, as well as at retailers such as Best Buy Co Inc. They have had success in getting court judgments against Chinese counterfeiters and domestic sellers of knock-offs, but the lawsuits involving one designer against another aren’t as easily resolved.  Otter Products Inc, the maker of OtterBox cases, has become a frequent visitor to the courthouse. The Colorado-based company has filed lawsuits in federal court in its home state against LifeProof, also known as Treefrog Developments Inc, and Mophie LLC for alleged patent infringement involving waterproof cases for iPhones, iPods and other devices. Mophie and LifeProof in court papers have denied the allegations. Otterbox and Mophie did not respond to requests for comment. LifeProof declined to comment on pending litigation. Company spokesman Jonathan Wegner said, however, that LifeProof has programs in place to protect its own intellectual property.  The Ballistic Case Co, based in Florida, has also been a repeat plaintiff. The company has sued rivals Cell-Nerds LLC and Boxwave Corp for allegedly copying the look of its rugged “Shell Gel” series of cases, which feature a dotted back and come in an array of colours. Designers invest significant resources in case styles and deserve legal protection, said Alan Weisberg, a Ballistic attorney. The company has sold more than $12mn worth of Shell Gel cases, according to court documents, and they are available at major retailers. Both Cell-Nerds and Boxwave are smaller enterprises that sell cases online. The Shell Gel models are priced at about $35, while similar Cell-Nerds and Boxwave cases go for less than $10. Earlier in January, a Miami federal judge allowed Ballistic’s case against Cell-Nerds to move forward, while the Boxwave case is in its early stages in the same court. Ballistic claims it has so-called “trade dress rights” to the design of its cases and wants similar, rival products off the market. An attorney for Cell-Nerds, Ury Fisher, said the company does not think Ballistic has accurately described its trade dress rights, and he noted that such cases are difficult to prove because plaintiffs have to show their product is readily recognisable to consumers. An attorney for Boxwave did not respond to a request for comment.    For patent-based lawsuits to succeed, plaintiffs will need to prove another company is infringing their patents and may also have to show what is innovative about their designs and worthy of protection. If found to infringe, some companies could be forced out of the market, said intellectual property attorney Christopher Carani of law firm McAndrews, Held & Malloy.  So far, however, the in-fighting among case designers does not show signs of slowing down the industry. Casemakers have trotted out models they say are tricked out to withstand two tonnes of force or can be used to film movies underwater. At the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas — where new case designs seemed to be on display everywhere — one maker even showed off a case lined in soft orange putty that is designed to become “rock hard” if the phone is dropped. — Reuters