Virtual worlds

Online Golf Site World Golf Tour Raises “Double Digit” Millions - 0 Comments
Posted By Rafat Ali - Fri 02 May 2008 11:50 AM PST

World Golf Tour, the online golf gaming environment, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from Panorama Capital, in its second round. Previous investor Battery Ventures also participated. VentureBeat puts…

MMO Developer Turbine Raises $25 Million Of $40 Million Third Round - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Wed 30 Apr 2008 09:54 AM PST

Turbine, a developer of MMO games, has raised $25 million of a planned $40 million third round report peHUB. The Westwood, MA-based company has now raised over $90 million. Investors…

@ EconSM: MTVN’s Social Media Challenge: Growing Digital Revenues - 0 Comments
Posted By David Kaplan - Tue 29 Apr 2008 10:26 AM PST

Alluding to Viacom’s (NYSE: VIA) decision to pass on buying MySpace, Staci D. Kramer, co-editor/EVP for paidContent parent ContentNext Media, asked a panel of MTV Network executives about missed opportunities…

ADVERTISE ON PAIDCONTENT

Industry Moves: Second Life Parent Appoints Former Organic CEO as Its New CEO - 1 Comment
Posted By Rafat Ali - Tue 22 Apr 2008 06:23 PM PST

Linden Lab, the parent company of Second Life, has appointed a big name CEO: Mark Kingdon, till now the CEO of Omnicom digital agency Organic, is stepping down to come…

Sony Delays PlayStation Home Again; Open Beta For Community Now Planned This Fall - 0 Comments
Posted By Staci D. Kramer - Tue 22 Apr 2008 06:06 AM PST

Expected this spring after an earlier delay, PlayStation Home is still not move-in ready. The real-time 3D community for PS3 consoles will stay in closed beta, although that will…

Social Net GamerDNA Raises $3 Million First Round; Changes Name From GuildCafe - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Fri 18 Apr 2008 11:56 AM PST

GamerDNA, a kind of social net for gamers, has raised a $3 million first round Flybridge Capital Partners. The site, which was formerly known as GuildCafe, had previously raised $600,000…

WPP Amongst $50 Million Investors In Game Maker Realtime Worlds - 0 Comments
Posted By Robert Andrews - Mon 14 Apr 2008 05:54 AM PST

One way to start playing in in-game advertising - forget middlemen; buy a game maker. WPP has acquired a minority stake in Dundee, Scotland-based game developer Realtime Worlds for $8.1…

Ad Industry Roundup: Google ‘Slap’; IAB; Conference Board; NYT-AfterCollege; ComScore - 0 Comments
Posted By David Kaplan - Mon 07 Apr 2008 07:27 PM PST

-- The ‘Google Slap’: positive or negative?: The debate over Google’s (NSDQ: GOOG) changes to its AdWords program continued to go back and forth last week. Bernstein Research analyst Jeffrey…

Broadband Content Bits: NBCU; Yahoo; Adobe-Viacom; Paramount-VooZoo - 1 Comment
Posted By Amanda Natividad - Fri 04 Apr 2008 04:40 PM PST

-- *NBCU* to offer original webisodes of its primetime shows: NBC Digital Entertainment will release original web content based on its existing primetime shows this July, Variety reports.. The webisodes,…

Nickelodeon Expands Virtual Worlds; ‘Hybrid’ Choice of Ad-Support, Paid Subs Coming In ‘09 - 4 Comments
Posted By David Kaplan - Thu 03 Apr 2008 04:46 AM PST

As Nickelodeon continues its gaming and virtual world expansion, we have some more details about the three virtual world sites now in development and plans to introduce a choice of…

Interview: Steve Youngwood, EVP, Digital Media, MTVN Kids And Family: 1,600 Games For ‘08 - 0 Comments
Posted By David Kaplan - Thu 20 Mar 2008 08:44 AM PST

Earlier this week, Nickelodeon said that it was developing 600 new games. Now the MTVN (NYSE: VIA) unit is clarifying things a bit: it will host 1,600 new games across…

Industry Moves: Second Life CEO Philip Rosedale Stepping Down - 1 Comment
Posted By Rafat Ali - Fri 14 Mar 2008 02:10 PM PST

So the other shoe has dropped on Second Life: the once-hyped and then much-maligned virtual world company is losing its creator, founder and CEO Philip Rosedale. He will remain involved…

Virtual Tours Provider EveryScape Gets $7 Million Funding - 0 Comments
Posted By Amanda Natividad - Wed 05 Mar 2008 11:00 AM PST

Waltham, MA.-based EveryScape has secured $7 million in its second round funding, led by new investor Dace Ventures and participation from existing investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Draper Fisher New England,…

Disney Forms Games & Communities Online Unit - 4 Comments
Posted By Rafat Ali - Tue 19 Feb 2008 07:16 PM PST

Disney (NYSE: DIS), through WDIG, has created a new team called Disney Online Studios, to focus on games, virtual worlds and online social communities...the unit will include the creators of…

Sparkplay Media Raises Raises $4.25 Million First Round For Browser-Based MMO - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Thu 14 Feb 2008 11:12 AM PST

Mill Valley, CA-based Sparkplay Media, a developer of 3D browser-based MMOs, has raised a $4.25 million first round from Redpoint Ventures and Prism Ventures. The company, which has been bootstrapped…

Virtual Worlds Developer Rocketon Raises $5 Million Second Round - 1 Comment
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Tue 12 Feb 2008 12:50 PM PST

SF-based Rocketon, a developer of a web-based virtual world and gaming service, has raised a $5 million second round from DE Shaw Group’s venture unit. The company previously raised $800,000,…

Hong Kong Social Net HeySpace Raises $10.75 Million Of $20 Million First Round - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Tue 12 Feb 2008 12:36 PM PST

Hong Kong-based social net HeySpace has raised $10.75 million of a planned $20 million first round, reports PE Hub. No investors have been named. Based on various reports, including this…

PBS Begins Testing Subscription-based, Ad-free Virtual World Aimed At Toddlers - 1 Comment
Posted By David Kaplan - Tue 15 Jan 2008 01:58 PM PST

PBS has entered the childrens’ virtual world space with its own subscription-based “online neighborhood.” Dubbed PBS Kids Play, the site is ad-free and is aimed at ages 3 to 6.…

Electric Sheep Lays Off Nearly One Third Of Its Staff; Cites Second Life Slowdown Among Factors - 1 Comment
Posted By Staci D. Kramer - Wed 19 Dec 2007 11:03 PM PST

As reasons for start-up layoffs go, it’s almost near mantra status: We’ve grown so much in recent months that it’s time to stop and trim. The Electric Sheep Company is…

Webkinz’s Ad-Support Move Sparks Backlash - 1 Comment
Posted By David Kaplan - Thu 13 Dec 2007 02:43 PM PST

Websites for young kids always have to tread carefully when it comes to advertising. Kids virtual world Webkinz is finding out just how much care is necessary. The company, which…

GuildCafe Acquires Uberguilds To Expand Network Of Gamers - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Mon 26 Nov 2007 11:00 AM PST

Cambridge, Mass-based GuildCafe, the creator of social networking tools for online game players, has acquired Uberguilds, a Portland-based network of online gaming communities. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.…

Earnings: Giant Interactive Reports Q3 Revs Up 164.2 Percent; Gold Farming Curbs Slow Usage - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Tue 20 Nov 2007 03:46 PM PST

In its first earnings report as a public company, Chinese online gamer Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA) posted Q3 revenue of $54.1 million, up 164.2 percent from last year. Net income…

Vivox Raises $7.8 Million Second Round for In-Game Voice Services - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Tue 13 Nov 2007 12:23 PM PST

Vivox, a Framingham, Mass.-based provider of voice services for online games and virtual worlds, has raised $7.8 million in a second round led by Benchmark Capital. Previous investors GrandBanks Capital…

Numedeon Takes Investment from Pat Sajak for Tween-Oriented Virtual World - 1 Comment
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Fri 02 Nov 2007 11:39 AM PST

Pasadena-based Numedeon, the parent company of tween-oriented virtual world Whyville, has taken an investment from game show host Pat Sajak, reports socalTech. Terms of the funding were not disclosed, though…

Chinese Online Gamer Giant Interactive Raises $813 Million in IPO; Shares Up on Day One - 0 Comments
Posted By Joseph Weisenthal - Thu 01 Nov 2007 11:15 AM PST

Chinese MMOG developer Giant Interactive Group (NYSE: GA) announced that its IPO shares priced last night at $15.50 per share, above the $12-$14 range it had indicated last month. A…