As if you needed any further reminding that phone and tablet games are where it’s at, take a look at the new portable gaming report that IDC and App Annie are releasing today. The report, obtained in advance by AllThingsD , shows just how different the new generation of mobile games is from the gaming-only devices that previously reigned supreme. For context, back in Q4 2012, total consumer spending on games for iOS and Android devices surpassed spending on “gaming-optimized handhelds” (that is, Sony’s PSP and Vita, and Nintendo’s DS, DSi and 3DS). But the real bombshell is in the new report, which covers Q1 2013: In that quarter, consumer spending on Sony’s and Nintendo’s handhelds declined significantly, while iOS and Google Play spending both increased , also significantly. Combined, the phone and tablet crowd spent nearly three times as much on games as handheld device owners.
Read MoreOsama Bedier, who joined Google in 2011 and headed the Google Wallet payment business, is leaving the company. Google confirmed a VentureBeat report , saying Bedier had decided to pursue unspecified opportunities.
Read MoreIt’s impossible to watch this Web-only commercial from Dove, called “Real Beauty Sketches” and not have a reaction. The shorter version has already attracted close to 30 million views on YouTube, part of Unilever’s long-running advertising campaign to focus on real-looking women over idealized models for its Dove line of skin products. This takes it a step further, with a sketch artist making pencil portraits of various women without seeing them, but listening to them describe what they look like. The artist then made another drawing based on descriptions of people who have just met them. Guess which one is more attractive? It’s a pretty devastating and very manipulative reveal, with the tagline: “You are more beautiful than you think.” The campaign has attracted both fans and critics — it sure hits home, whatever side you are on — but you should judge for yourself if it works or not:
Read MoreCommerce startup Square rolled out an update to its Register product on Monday, the software given freely to merchants to use as a point-of-sale system in conjunction with the Square card reader. The update makes the software more amenable to short-order restaurants by giving them the ability to create customized kitchen tickets and order modifications, essentially an attempt to make its software useful to more types of businesses in the SMB demographic.
Read MoreAfter expanding into hardware creation with the Kindle, the Kindle Fire tablet and a rumored smart phone , Amazon is developing a proprietary TV set-top box.
Read MoreChirpify, the Portland, Oregon-based startup that allows users of social networks like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook pay for items inside a particular stream, has secured an additional $2 million in venture funding from Voyager Capital. This, along with capital from previous angel investors Andy Liu, Rudy Gadre, HootSuite CEO Ryan Holmes, and others brings the total amount of funds raised to $3.3 million.
Read MoreBlackstone Group has ended its pursuit of Dell Inc., less than a month after the private-equity firm said it would try to top a leveraged buyout by the computer maker’s founder and a rival investment firm. Blackstone had been putting together a bid for Dell to trump the $24.4 billion offer from founder and Chief Executive Michael Dell and private-equity firm Silver Lake Partners. Blackstone’s offer would have kept part of the company in the hands of public shareholders. Read the rest of this post on the original site »
Read MoreFirst look at Google earnings : Net revenue of $11 billion and earnings of $11.58 per share. The street was looking for $11.2 billion and $10.68. Share are trading down 2 percent. The “real” Google numbers — Google’s ad business, net of Motorola — were $12.95 billion minus traffic acquisition costs of $2.96 billion, or $9.99 billion. Revenues were up 22 percent; TAC was up 18 percent.
Read MoreGoogle chairman Eric Schmidt is spending a lot of time on the road right now — he’s got a new book to promote — but he has popped into Google’s Motorola unit to see what the phone company is working up. It’s amazing stuff, he promises. And you’ll see it sooner than later. “They have a new set of products, which are phenomenal”, he told Ina Fried and Liz Gannes at D: Dive into Mobile today. “Very, very impressive.” Ah. Great! So, is he talking about a new generation of phones, or some other stuff that isn’t a phone? “Think of it is as phones plus,” Schmidt says, stone-faced. Meanwhile, if you’re wondering when Google’s newest wonder-product, its cool/creepy Glass glasses, will become mainstream, Schmidt says it’s already happened — on the Google campus
Read MoreHenry Blodget and Jeff Bezos, together again! As Blodget explains on his own site, the Amazon CEO is personally leading a $5 million investment round in Blodget’s six-year-old Web publishing business. By my count, that brings total investment in Business Insider to more than $18 million; via IM, Blodget tells me that the new deal values the company above the $50 million valuation it earned during its last round in 2011. (Because of my conflict of interest , this makes me happy.) So there’s the nuts and bolts of the deal (for more background on Henry and TBI, see Ken Auletta’s well-timed piece ). The only other thing to spell out here is that this deal reminds you that life is long, and relationships last. In 1998, Blodget and Bezos helped boost each others’ careers, when Blodget correctly predicted that Amazon’s stock would pass $400 a share (thanks to Patrick LaForge for catching my bone-headed typo ). Blodget has remained an Amazon bull since then, and it looks like Bezos has stayed in the Blodget fan club, too.
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