Virtual Worlds News

Nearly $14 Million Invested in 5 Virtual Worlds-Related Companies in Q2 2009

2009-07-09T15:23:39-07:00

Engage Digital (formerly Virtual Worlds Management), the leading producer of trade events and media that focus user engagement, announced findings from a comprehensive study of public transactions showing that investors put nearly $14 million into five virtual worlds-related companies in...

PlaySpan and PBS Team Up

2009-07-09T08:54:05-07:00

Following up last weeks news of expansion into Turkey and Brazil, PlaySpan is in the news again, inking a deal with the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and its subbrands PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS PLAY! to distribute a co-branded Ultimate...

Historic Philadelphia Up and Running

2009-07-08T14:52:34-07:00

GeoSim Systems, headquartered in Israel and operating a wholly-owned subsidiary in Pennsylvania specializing in 3D, virtual worlds, says its Virtual Tour of Historic Philadelphia is up and running. The project is a joint venture between GeoSim and Independence Hall Association...

Zynga Zaps Two with Trademark Lawsuit

2009-07-08T10:55:08-07:00

Social game maker Zynga filed two complaints in federal district court last week, both alleging trademark infringement. One named Phillip Labrasca a defendant and the other named Duc Doan a defendant. Both complaints allege the defendants illegally appropriated and used...

QuickStat: Facebook Freebie Fans MJ Fever

2009-07-08T07:36:00-07:00

Tuesday was the day of Michael Jackson's memorial service. It was also the day Facebook made a special commemorative virtual gift available. The gift was a virtual representation of the singer's famous white sequined glove. This gift was given over...

Name Change: Virtual Worlds Management becomes Engage Digital

2009-07-07T16:57:51-07:00

Just a small but important note: Virtual Worlds Management, publisher of this blog, is now Engage Digital Media or Engage Digital for short. The new name change reflects our broader focus and is in line with the Engage! Expo rebranding...

Weekly Newsletter Covering The Business of Virtual Goods Launched

2009-07-07T15:38:19-07:00

We have just launched a Virtual Goods Weekly, a weekly newsletter covering the business of virtual goods and microtransactions. The newsletter complements our Virtual Goods News blog. So if you're hungry for virtual goods business news and like it formatted...

NewsBrief: A Michael Jackson Tribute Lands Online

2009-07-07T07:37:46-07:00

Caught up in a little bit of Michael Jackson fever but couldn't cop a ticket to the memorial in LA? There's still a way you can pay tribute to the King of Pop. Music and concert-themed virtual world Planet Cazmo...

WeeWorld Survey: Teens Still Willing to Spend

2009-07-07T07:00:07-07:00

Unemployment is on the rise. Housing prices are down. Flat is the new up. Is there no place where the economy booms? Look no further than your nearest teen-targeted online virtual world that encourages users to evolve their offline and...

NewsBrief: Twinity's Metaversum Secures $4M in Funding

2009-07-07T06:13:41-07:00

Germany's Metaversum GmbH, the developer of the online mirror world Twinity, said today it has raised an additional $6.3 million from a group of venture capital funds. BFB BeteiligungsFonds Brandenburg joins existing investors Grazia Equity and Balderton Capital in the...

NewsBrief: G.I. Joe Gets Avatar-Action Figure Promo

2009-07-06T15:59:52-07:00

Hasbro has kicked off an avatar building promotion to promote next month's release of G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra, a live-action adventure film starring Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Christopher Eccleston, Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The promotion encourages visitors to GIJoe.com to “pick a...

Virtual Greats Brings Rocawear To Project Powder

2009-07-06T14:36:09-07:00

Virtual Greats announced that a line of branded virtual goods based on the Rocawear license would be appearing in Outspark's Project Powder online game. Project Powder is a snowboarding game with a heavy emphasis on customization of a player's in-game...

Zynga Gains Design Maven in Brian Reynolds

2009-07-06T11:23:55-07:00

In the build-up to July 4th, VirtualWorldsNews missed a significant news item on the people front: that Brian Reynolds, one of the traditional game industry's most respected game designers, had signed on as chief designer with social gaming juggernaut Zynga....

Birthdays in the News: USA, WWW?

2009-07-02T14:07:00-07:00

As a nation, we commemorate the "birthday" of the United States during the first week of July, reflecting on events occurring in Philadelphia in 1776. But what of the less-defined territory of cyberspace, the Web, of virtual worlds, and of...

Chinese Game Stocks Tumble on Virtual Currency Regulation

2009-07-02T13:22:22-07:00

In the three-day period since the announcement of China's new laws regulating virtual currency, stock prices for major Chinese online game operators have crumbled, plunging by as much as 10% according to a report from Seeking Alpha. Affected companies are...