Data Filter: The News You Need in Easy-to Swallow Gel-Cap Form

Electronic Gaming Business, July 2, 2003

News-o-Matic
Whassup?: Only 5% of U.S. consumers say that among the various kinds of fee-
based content online, they are "most interested" in paying for games,
according to a survey by e-payment provider PaymentOne. This puts the
category just ahead of computer security products (4%) and behind music
content (11%). Online classifieds (for sale, jobs listings, etc.) was
considered most important by 52% of respondents.
So What!: While the number appears small, the survey is neither surprising
nor discouraging. Surely, utility does drive online content sales, but
broadband access may open consumers up to seeing broadband as a
media delivery platform...eventually. This stat throws some water on the
optimistic view that online game play's fortunes are tied directly
to broadband penetration. This is not Korea or Japan where digital gaming
is more deeply engrained and consumers naturally see in new technologies
like broadband and cell phones their game play potential.

Whassup?: Gender inequality abounds in the world of online gameplay. Cal
State researcher Edward Castronova discovered that female EverQuest
characters selling on eBay go for about 10% less than male characters.
Only 20% of EverQuest players choose female avatars, although it is
common knowledge that female players of the game often take on male
avatars to avoid being harassed.
So What!: The research itself is a staggering expression of the obvious
and unsurprising, but why aren't the game companies themselves
issuing these sorts of regular examinations of fantasy behavior in their
massive worlds? EA or Sony could do themselves and the industry a
service by inviting researchers in to study fantasy behavior in their
persistent worlds and by issuing regular press reports on community
behavior. It would help legitimate the hobby and make game
companies authorities on gameplay fantasy, not just exploiters of it.

Whassup?: Vivendi Universal Games is not getting its asking price, according
to various reports. Part of Vivendi's attempt to sell off its U.S.
entertainment assets, the attempt to bundle the games unit separately
was shooting for an $800 million value, since it contained brands such
as Blizzard (Warcraft) and Sierra (Half Life), but VUG has been
unimpressed by the initial offers.
So What!: VUG may get bundled in with the other movie and theme park
properties in a larger VU entertainment sale, and Gamasutra reports
rumors that TakeTwo and Microsoft are considering buying VUG and
divvying the assets. The market seems to be saying what analysts were
arguing months ago, that game publishers are overpricing themselves
and so retarding industry consolidation.

Whassup?: Eidos warned investors that its Board had "to significantly
reduce its expectations for profit before tax for the financial year ending
June 30, 2003," because up to 1 million units of Tomb Raider:
The Angel of Darkness would not ship into the non-U.S. markets until
after July and during the new fiscal year.
Language translations and localizations were still being worked out,
despite the June 20 release of the PS2 version in the U.S., and the
PC version, too, would not ship until July worldwide. Eidos stock
peaked this year on May 28 at 3.09 and had slipped ever since to 2.22
on June 30.
So What!: And it gets worse. According to reviewers, shop owners and
players we consulted and our own experience with the early levels,
TR:AOD could well be the buggiest and most overtly unfinished game
ever shipped for the PS2. Eidos's announcement only underscores
suspicions that the pre-mature release of the game was cynical or
desperate -- aimed at satisfying revenue targets not customers.
The only noble course after such a debacle is for Eidos to admit poor
judgment and allow gamers to trade in their old disks for fixed versions
of the game. How does an industry convince consumers, let alone
media partners, that it is maturing when one of its highest profile
franchises ships in such a broken state? What would happen if
Paramount released its Tomb Raider film next week with faulty special
effects and sound drop-offs? They wouldn't, would they?

[Copyright 2003 PBI Media, LLC. All rights reserved.]