Official E3 Thread!
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Video Game Industry Prepares for LA Extravaganza
Sun May 11, 2:27 PM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Ben Berkowitz
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Cram 65,000 people into a convention center, add the sounds of aliens being shot and race cars being crashed at rock-and-roll volumes, then sprinkle in a few women dressed in costumes just an inch or two this side of indecency.
What you get is E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the video game industry's annual convention that starts this week in Los Angeles and represents the favored forum for deal-making and promotion in a business expected to generate $30 billion in sales in 2003.
"I think it's going to be a good shot in the arm for the business," Jeff Lapin, the chief executive of games publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (Nasdaq:TTWO - news), told Reuters.
The show floor opens Wednesday, but the festivities kick off Monday night when Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) holds a press conference at which it is expected to announce upgrades to its Xbox (news - web sites) Live online gaming service.
The next day, Sony Corp (news - web sites). (6758.T) and Nintendo (news - web sites) Co. Ltd. (7974.OS) will have back-to-back events to showcase the latest games for their consoles, the PlayStation 2 (news - web sites) and GameCube. The afternoon will feature new games from Konami Corp. (9766.T) and the latest on Nokia (news - web sites)'s (NOK1V.HE) N-Gage phone/game device.
The crush will start in earnest on Wednesday, as the show floor opens and attendees rush in to get hands-on time with the latest games, some of which are on the verge of release and some of which will not see the light of retail shelves for months.
Special pavilions and rooms dedicated to the British, Korean, Australian, Canadian and Hong Kong games industries have been set up so companies there can try to take a piece of a global market dominated by the United States and Japan.
STOCKS WILL MOVE
Analysts agree that E3 is a catalyst for game stocks and the time to buy is now.
"If there is a trading rule on how to play the videogame stocks surrounding E3, recent history says that buying them during the show is the most consistent way to make money," RBC Capital Markets analyst Stewart Halpern said in a note.
Halpern's analysis showed that in 2000 through 2002, the only constant in terms of price moves is that the stocks go up an average of 5.4 percent during the show, while no pattern holds true in the days before and after the event.
One of those game publishers, Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq:ERTS - news), is expected to shine during the show.
"They have so many popular licenses ... they kind of overshadow everybody else," Dan Hsu, the editor of games magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly, told Reuters.
"Nintendo is probably the one that has the most to lose right now," Hsu said, referring to the company's recent sales struggles for the GameCube console and a lack of buzz about its games lineup before the show.
Among the games drawing the biggest buzz before the show are the PC shooters "Doom III" and "Half-Life 2," Sony's racing game "Gran Turismo 4" and Microsoft's action title "Halo 2."
E3 is also big business for the city of Los Angeles, generating at least $12 million in revenue . On Friday shops throughout downtown Los Angeles had signs in their windows welcoming the convention.
Video Game Industry Prepares for LA Extravaganza
Sun May 11, 2:27 PM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Ben Berkowitz
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Cram 65,000 people into a convention center, add the sounds of aliens being shot and race cars being crashed at rock-and-roll volumes, then sprinkle in a few women dressed in costumes just an inch or two this side of indecency.
What you get is E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the video game industry's annual convention that starts this week in Los Angeles and represents the favored forum for deal-making and promotion in a business expected to generate $30 billion in sales in 2003.
"I think it's going to be a good shot in the arm for the business," Jeff Lapin, the chief executive of games publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (Nasdaq:TTWO - news), told Reuters.
The show floor opens Wednesday, but the festivities kick off Monday night when Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) holds a press conference at which it is expected to announce upgrades to its Xbox (news - web sites) Live online gaming service.
The next day, Sony Corp (news - web sites). (6758.T) and Nintendo (news - web sites) Co. Ltd. (7974.OS) will have back-to-back events to showcase the latest games for their consoles, the PlayStation 2 (news - web sites) and GameCube. The afternoon will feature new games from Konami Corp. (9766.T) and the latest on Nokia (news - web sites)'s (NOK1V.HE) N-Gage phone/game device.
The crush will start in earnest on Wednesday, as the show floor opens and attendees rush in to get hands-on time with the latest games, some of which are on the verge of release and some of which will not see the light of retail shelves for months.
Special pavilions and rooms dedicated to the British, Korean, Australian, Canadian and Hong Kong games industries have been set up so companies there can try to take a piece of a global market dominated by the United States and Japan.
STOCKS WILL MOVE
Analysts agree that E3 is a catalyst for game stocks and the time to buy is now.
"If there is a trading rule on how to play the videogame stocks surrounding E3, recent history says that buying them during the show is the most consistent way to make money," RBC Capital Markets analyst Stewart Halpern said in a note.
Halpern's analysis showed that in 2000 through 2002, the only constant in terms of price moves is that the stocks go up an average of 5.4 percent during the show, while no pattern holds true in the days before and after the event.
One of those game publishers, Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq:ERTS - news), is expected to shine during the show.
"They have so many popular licenses ... they kind of overshadow everybody else," Dan Hsu, the editor of games magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly, told Reuters.
"Nintendo is probably the one that has the most to lose right now," Hsu said, referring to the company's recent sales struggles for the GameCube console and a lack of buzz about its games lineup before the show.
Among the games drawing the biggest buzz before the show are the PC shooters "Doom III" and "Half-Life 2," Sony's racing game "Gran Turismo 4" and Microsoft's action title "Halo 2."
E3 is also big business for the city of Los Angeles, generating at least $12 million in revenue
. On Friday shops throughout downtown Los Angeles had signs in their windows welcoming the convention. This site was down or something??? Couldnt access it since morning!
btw...E3 news...
Microsoft Press Conference
Microsoft Unveils New Games, Xbox Live Upgrade Tue May 13,12:29 AM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Ben Berkowitz and Reed Stevenson
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp., looking to turn its loss-making Xbox (news - web sites) game console into a digital entertainment center, unveiled a series of upgrades to its online game service on Monday and showed off several high-profile games.
At a press conference to kick off the $30-billion video game industry's annual E3 trade show, Microsoft demonstrated a preview of "Halo 2," a sequel to the interstellar action title that ranks as the Xbox's best-selling game.
The brief demonstration drew enthusiastic applause from a packed auditorium once used for boxing matches.
The company also showed the first inhouse efforts from British publisher Rare, acquired by Microsoft last year to improve the software giant's lineup of higher-margin games.
Such games, including upcoming Rare releases like "Kameo" and "Grabbed by the Ghoulies," are key to the company's strategy for selling hardware and ultimately turning a profit on the Xbox.
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft said on Monday that its Home and Entertainment division, which is responsible for the Xbox, lost $190 million before taxes, write-offs and other charges in the most recent quarter compared with a loss of $97 million a year earlier.
Microsoft unveiled a new brand for its sports titles, "XSN Sports," and said players would be able to create virtual teams and leagues and engage in competitions through its Xbox Live online service.
Professional football star Peyton Manning appeared briefly to promote the new brand, though he did not play any of the sports games on stage, in contrast to a star-studded demonstration by Sony Corp (news - web sites). at last year's E3.
A glaring absence from Xbox Live is the best-selling sports lineup from the No. 1 games publisher, Electronic Arts Inc. EA is set to announce this week that it will only support online sports play for rival Sony's PlayStation 2 (news - web sites).
XBOX LIVE
In an effort to further differentiate itself from Sony's dominant presence in the $30-billion game industry, Microsoft "Chief Xbox Officer" Robbie Bach told the audience that "gaming is about community."
But he acknowledged that Microsoft had yet to sign EA onto its Xbox Live platform.
"Sure, we'd love to have them on the platform and we'll keep talking to them," Bach said in an interview.
Microsoft claims an advantage over Sony in online gaming, since the Xbox connects through a central broadband server for its 500,000 users. Sony leaves the management of such online services to individual game publishers.
Microsoft announced a slate of new Xbox Live functions, including an online voice-based chat room and a feature that can alert and invite other players to join in online contests.
The company also rolled out software called "Music Mixer" that will let Xbox owners move digital music files from PCs or CDs to the Xbox, create playlists and sing karaoke.
One thing fans will not hear from Microsoft any time soon though is details of a price cut on the $199 Xbox. Bach said the company saw no need for such a move.
"We're very comfortable with the way things are selling," he said.
btw...E3 news...
Microsoft Press Conference
Microsoft Unveils New Games, Xbox Live Upgrade Tue May 13,12:29 AM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Ben Berkowitz and Reed Stevenson
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp., looking to turn its loss-making Xbox (news - web sites) game console into a digital entertainment center, unveiled a series of upgrades to its online game service on Monday and showed off several high-profile games.
At a press conference to kick off the $30-billion video game industry's annual E3 trade show, Microsoft demonstrated a preview of "Halo 2," a sequel to the interstellar action title that ranks as the Xbox's best-selling game.
The brief demonstration drew enthusiastic applause from a packed auditorium once used for boxing matches.
The company also showed the first inhouse efforts from British publisher Rare, acquired by Microsoft last year to improve the software giant's lineup of higher-margin games.
Such games, including upcoming Rare releases like "Kameo" and "Grabbed by the Ghoulies," are key to the company's strategy for selling hardware and ultimately turning a profit on the Xbox.
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft said on Monday that its Home and Entertainment division, which is responsible for the Xbox, lost $190 million before taxes, write-offs and other charges in the most recent quarter compared with a loss of $97 million a year earlier.
Microsoft unveiled a new brand for its sports titles, "XSN Sports," and said players would be able to create virtual teams and leagues and engage in competitions through its Xbox Live online service.
Professional football star Peyton Manning appeared briefly to promote the new brand, though he did not play any of the sports games on stage, in contrast to a star-studded demonstration by Sony Corp (news - web sites). at last year's E3.
A glaring absence from Xbox Live is the best-selling sports lineup from the No. 1 games publisher, Electronic Arts Inc. EA is set to announce this week that it will only support online sports play for rival Sony's PlayStation 2 (news - web sites).
XBOX LIVE
In an effort to further differentiate itself from Sony's dominant presence in the $30-billion game industry, Microsoft "Chief Xbox Officer" Robbie Bach told the audience that "gaming is about community."
But he acknowledged that Microsoft had yet to sign EA onto its Xbox Live platform.
"Sure, we'd love to have them on the platform and we'll keep talking to them," Bach said in an interview.
Microsoft claims an advantage over Sony in online gaming, since the Xbox connects through a central broadband server for its 500,000 users. Sony leaves the management of such online services to individual game publishers.
Microsoft announced a slate of new Xbox Live functions, including an online voice-based chat room and a feature that can alert and invite other players to join in online contests.
The company also rolled out software called "Music Mixer" that will let Xbox owners move digital music files from PCs or CDs to the Xbox, create playlists and sing karaoke.
One thing fans will not hear from Microsoft any time soon though is details of a price cut on the $199 Xbox. Bach said the company saw no need for such a move.
"We're very comfortable with the way things are selling," he said.
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