Industry in search of (another) standard
A new consortium hopes to build a common development platform to simplify the production and deployment of mobile games.

Nokia Increases 2006 Handset Sales Expectations
Speaking yesterday at Nokia's AGM, company Chairman and CEO Jorma Ollila traced the rapid rise of mobile communications and described the nature of the industry now. Ollila described how the size, growth and dynamics of emerging markets are increasingly driving demand. He repeated the company's earlier statements that Nokia expects approximately 80% of the next billion subscribers to come from the emerging markets, and that Nokia expects the global mobile subscriber base to reach three billion during 2008.

Russia's Sky Link starts testing BREW services in two cities
MOSCOW, Mar 30 (Prime-Tass) -- Russian CDMA mobile operator Sky Link has started testing BREW services in Moscow and St. Petersburg, the company said in a press release Thursday.

I-play unveils line up of new games
I-play, the mobile entertainment company, unveiled another stellar line up of games that combine strong, proven franchises and original IP, covering a range of popular genres from car racing, trivia quiz and casual puzzle titles.

I-play unveils line up of new games
I-play, the mobile entertainment company, unveiled another stellar line up of games that combine strong, proven franchises and original IP, covering a range of popular genres from car racing, trivia quiz and casual puzzle titles.

Civilization 3 arrives in the US for Mobile
Com2uS, a leading global developer and publisher of mobile games, has launched Sid Meier's Civilization 3 in the US, the hugely popular empire-building strategy PC game developed by Firaxis Games. The mobile game, which first launched in Europe and Asia at the end of last year, has made its US debut on T-Mobile US and will soon be available on other major US carriers.

Living Mobile releases "Beyblade GRevolution"
With Beyblade GRevolution Living Mobile releases an extraordinary RPG.

Free Su Doku for Mobile Phones
Publisher and Developer Greenstreet Software in association with Creon Studios Ltd and conjunction with www.buzzfone.com has published a version of its top selling Su Doku Classic PC game for mobile phones. And the first 10 games are totally free. It will work on most modern mobiles with a WAP/Java enabled colour screen, including most popular models from Motorola, Samsung, Sony, Nokia and many others.

HandyGames announces the release of Spellboys - a puzzle game for mobile phones
A leading independent developer of mobile games, HandyGames™, announces the release of an enchanting puzzle game for all current handsets in April 2006. The player slips into the role of Hocus, an apprendice of the royal magician and accompanies him on his way to become a great magician. Hocus has not only to fight against monsters and brutal creatures. His classmate Pocus tries everything to become himself the most powerful magician of the kingdom. The player experiences in 50 thrilling levels a rather unusual puzzle adventure with an enchanting story and an innovative game play. Two game modes and countless levels provide lots of fun for all fans of magic and wizardry. The simple controls with just one key and an extensive tutorial will help the player at the beginning. A dynamic difficulty level which adjusts to the experience of the player makes the game really challenging even for professionals.

Runestone Games announces Fireworks
Runestone Games announces Fireworks, a light entertainment application for mobile handsets. The user can watch and participate in a Fireworks show across five stunning backdrops.

HandyGames releases "Flitzer"
Flitzer, the perhaps most unusual sports game of this year, is now available for mobile phones. Don't care about rules or the usual interpretation of football and start streaking on the pitch before millions of spectators worldwide. Flitzer has fascinated the press at CeBIT (among them all major German TV stations) with its rather uncommon game concept.

Slotland Online Casino Announces New Mobile Slot Game - 03-30-06
March 30 - Slotland online casino reports huge success with their mobile casino. The unique online slots site has now introduced one of their most popular internet casino slots, Golden 8, to the mobile casino platform...

4th Annual Mobile Game Conference on July 13-14, 2006 in Seattle to Focus on Design, Construction and Potential; Conference Focuses On The Critical Elements That Make Great Mobile Games Possible
SEATTLE --(Business Wire)-- March 30, 2006 -- The Game Initiative, the leading producer of conferences for professionals in the computer and video game industry, today announced the fourth annual Mobile Game Conference, taking place July 13-14, 2006, in Seattle, Wash. With speakers from leading operators, developers and publishers worldwide, Mobile Game Conference focuses on three key themes: Design, Construction and Potential. Attendees will walk away having shown, discussed and seen state of the art innovation in the mobile games industry.

I-play's latest stunning games line up
I-play, the mobile entertainment company, today unveiled another stellar line up of games that combine strong, proven franchises and original IP, covering a range of popular genres from car racing, trivia quiz and casual puzzle titles.

Werd Interactive Launches New Mobile Portal, New Games Range & New Price Point
Buying mobile games is a slow, complicated and expensive process, which is turning off more players than it is attracting, according to development studio Werd Interactive. Visitors worldwide can browse and buy all of Werd's games directly from their phone, for only $1.99 or $2.99 each. This includes it's unique new 'Spectrum' range of games, which allow players to change and customise the color of almost everything within the game as well as it's popular Neo Retro entry level titles.

3G Devices Such as the Nokia N70 and Sony Ericsson K750 Show Strong Resonance
US San F. : Design innovation and the promising 3G user experience influenced European handset sales during the 2005 holiday season, according to Telephia, the leading provider of performance measurement information to the mobile industry.

Motorola RAZR Still Dominating US Handset Sales
Merrill Lynch has carried out another of its interesting shop visits, taking in 80 stores in 4 USA regions. Following their store visits, they are maintaining their own estimates for handset sales, which do tend to be about 10% above industry expectations. Both Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel are expected to add 1.6 million customers each in Q1, with Cingular picking up 1.2 million and T-Mobile around 950,000 new customers.

The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drifts Onto Mobile with I-play
I-play, the mobile games company and publisher of two of the top-selling racing titles in Europe and the United States, announced that it has signed a deal with Universal Studios Consumer Products Group for the mobile rights to the third film in the hugely popular The Fast and The Furious street racing film franchise. I-play's mobile game title, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo, will launch simultaneously with Universal Pictures' 2006 theatrical release of The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift in the second quarter of this year.

IN-FUSIO releases F-16® Air Fighter
Mobile players will soon be able to enter the cockpit and take control of one of the best fighter-jets in the world, the F-16® Fighting Falcon™. The innovative shoot-'em-up mobile game “F-16® Air Fighter”, featuring exclusive air simulation elements, is scheduled for a release in May 2006 on Java enabled mobile phones.

In-Game Advertising goes mobile
IGA Worldwide and Exit Games announced a partnership to enable the world's first mobile in-game advertising solution. Neutron, Exit Games' leading multi-player solution for mobile phones, will be integrated with IGA Worldwide's ad-serving platform the Radial Network, to enable advertisers to reach consumers via mobile games.

First S60 3rd Edition Device Ships
The Nokia 3250 is a GSM tri-band portable phone, supporting GSM/EDGE 900/1800/1900. Its twist-on design enables fast and easy access to phone, music player and 2.0 megapixel camera. Memory is expandable up to 1GB with a microSD card, allowing up to 750 songs of quality stereo audio to be stored on the device. In addition to advanced music capabilities, the device supports e.g. MMS, e-mail, WAP 2.0 (XHTML) browsing and Java technology.

Motorola 3G E1070 Handset
ASIA Hong Kong : Motorola unveiled its latest 3G handset, the Motorola E1070. Specially designed to deliver the power of 3G technology, the Motorola E1070 offers extraordinary entertainment, communications and versatility.

Gameloft secures Mobile Game Rights for "Mission: Impossible III"
Gameloft, a leading developer and publisher of games for mobile phones, announced it has signed an exclusive agreement with Viacom Consumer Products, Inc. to develop, publish and distribute the wireless game version of one of the most highly anticipated action adventure films of the year, “Mission: Impossible III,” starring Tom Cruise and directed by J.J. Abrams (“Lost,” “Alias”). The film is produced by Cruise and Paula Wagner.

Mobile Games Engine ABYSS® 2.0 has its premiere with V-Rally 3D
FISHLABS, a leading 3D mobile games developer, celebrates the premiere of its platform independent Mobile Games Engine ABYSS® 2.0 with V-Rally 3D. The Game is released by iFone, the leading wireless entertainment publisher, and licensed by Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), a leading global publisher of video games. V-Rally 3D is iFone’s first in a series of 3D games expected to be launched in 2006 and is based on Atari’s best-selling PlayStation console version. Synonymous with high speed and adrenaline thrills V-Rally 3D pushes the limits of the mobile phone platform to deliver a spectacular multi-player console-like racing experience.

Tira Wireless to add Support for Microsoft Windows Mobile to Tira Jump Product Suite
Tira Wireless, the premier provider of advanced technology for mobile content deployment, announced that it will be adding support for Microsoft Windows Mobile to the Tira Jump Product Suite. With broad support for multiple mobile operating systems and content types, users of the Tira Jump Product Suite will be able to quickly adapt and manage mobile content for deployment on diverse handsets available in the market today. The Windows Mobile platform powers more than 100 devices available worldwide from mobile operators such as Cingular, Orange, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile.

Exit Games partners with Motricity
Exit Games, a leading global provider of connected mobile entertainment software and related services for game developers, publishers, mobile network operators and service providers has partnered with Motricity Inc., a leading mobile content services and solutions provider. The partnership will enable the integration of Motricity's industry-leading mobile community services into Exit Games' multiplayer environment, Neutron 3.0. Now, in cooperation with Exit Games, any third party can develop high-quality multiplayer games via Neutron 3.0 which can be seamlessly integrated with Motricity's white-labeled mobile community management service.

Twentieth Century Fox and Glu Mobile launch Ice Age 2: Arctic Slide
Twentieth Century Fox, one of the world's largest producers and distributors of motion pictures, and Glu Mobile, a leading creator and global publisher of mobile entertainment, announced the launch of Ice Age 2: Arctic Slide, a mobile game based on the animated film, "Ice Age: The Meltdown." Also available for download are ringtones, wallpaper, and in select regions, video. The new movie is the highly anticipated sequel to Fox's 2002 blockbuster, "Ice Age," which grossed more than $381 million in global box office sales. "Ice Age: The Meltdown" will be released internationally starting on March 31, 2006.

Smelly Samsung Phones
Samsung has submitted a patent application for a mobile phone which would include a "perfume container" which can then spray the perfume out, either when a button is pressed on the handset, or when the phone receives a phone call. Presumably if a handset came with several containers you could have a nice smell for friends and family and a not so pleasant odour for calls from your boss ?

GDC 06: Mario for Mobile
March 24, 2006 - This week at GDC Mobile in San Jose, I had the great pleasure of speaking with dozens and dozen of cellphone game makers and publishers about the future of our industry. How to design better games? How to effectively use a license? How to get more people interested in mobile gaming? All of these questions -- and many more -- were great subjects of discussion at the Fairmont Hotel, site of the mobile conference.

Motorola Uncovers the Next Big Thing in Mobile Gaming
SAN JOSE, Calif., March 23 -- Uncovering fresh talent in mobile gaming, Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT - News) is proud to announce Andreja Djokovic of Barbaroga and Jennifer Hruska and Shayne Guiliano of Sonic Network as the winners of 2006//CODE:MOTO, a two-day developer competition held at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) Mobile 2006 in San Jose, California.

Games and Mobile Industry Leaders to Converge in New York City for 5th Annual Games & Mobile Forum on April 25-26, 2006
NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 03/23/2006 -- Digital Media Wire, the industry's leading digital entertainment and media news, event and information provider, today announced the headline speakers for its 5th Annual Games & Mobile Forum (www.gamesandmobile.com) to take place at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City from Tuesday, April 25 through Wednesday, April 26, 2006.

GDC: Success Factors of One-Button Casual Mobile Games
Gamevil has been publishing games in South Korea since the year 2000, but has recently gained some fame for their one-button mobile title, Skipping Stone – the 2005 mobile game of the year across many publications.

"The fact is, most [mobile] games suck", Mitch Lasky - EA's Senior VP of Mobile
Mitch Laskey (pictured above) made people sit up during a keynote speech at the Game Developers Conference when he said "the fact is, most [mobile] games suck." And we can hope Mitch knows good mobile games when he sees them as he was the former CEO of Jamdat, which EA bought for a cool $684 million late last year. During his speach he also said that "it's too late for mid-sized publishers who are barely profitable and don't own hits." According to Lasky, "the top 20 games generate the top 93% of revenues, but that mobile operators persist in offering up to 400 games each."

Exit Games and IGA Worldwide Partner to Launch World's First Mobile in-game Advertising Solution
Hamburg / New York, March 21, 2006 - IGA Worldwide and Exit Games today announced a partnership to enable the world's first mobile in-game advertising solution. Neutron, Exit Games' leading multi-player solution for mobile phones, will be integrated with IGA Worldwide's ad-serving platform the Radial Network, to enable advertisers to reach consumers via mobile games.

New from Xing Mobile: Boxing Champion 2006
The first in a range of sports games for mobile phones from Xing Mobile. Boxing Champion 2006 puts you in the shoes of a professional boxer who needs to knock his opponents out of the ring.

Your World Games unveils GPD and competetive Gaming Functions of Upcoming Mobile Title "The Shroud"
"The Shroud" GPS Experience Has Players on the Move, While Newly Created International Farmers League Offers Worldwide Leaderboard and Prizes

I-play brings ‘Slyder' to Europe and Asia
Compulsive ‘one-thumb play' game to arrive on mobiles across Asia Pacific and Europe

Mediaplazza release E-Bird
Mediaplazza release E-Bird, its new horizontal shooter.

Verizon Wireless' V CAST and QUALCOMM's BREW Solution Boost Premium Game
SAN DIEGO and BEDMINSTER, N.J., March 22 -- QUALCOMM Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM), a leading developer and innovator of Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and other advanced wireless technologies, and Verizon Wireless, the nation's leading wireless service provider, today announced that Verizon Wireless' V CAST service and QUALCOMM's BREW(R) solution are helping meet the growing demand for high-quality mobile games. According to Verizon Wireless, the company saw a 36 percent growth in gaming downloads over the last year since launching premium 3D games as part of the V CAST service. Verizon Wireless' V CAST service, which leverages CDMA2000(R) 1xEV-DO technology and the BREW solution, provides a wide variety of compelling wireless data options for subscribers, moving beyond just traditional applications to include mobile video and music players, 3D games and other advanced applications. This new data indicates how Verizon Wireless' investment in its industry-leading wireless broadband network is leading to a significant uptake in high-quality mobile game downloads.

Exit Games and IGA Worldwide Partner to Launch World's First Mobile in-game Advertising Solution
Hamburg / New York, March 21, 2006 - IGA Worldwide and Exit Games today announced a partnership to enable the world's first mobile in-game advertising solution. Neutron, Exit Games' leading multi-player solution for mobile phones, will be integrated with IGA Worldwide's ad-serving platform the Radial Network, to enable advertisers to reach consumers via mobile games.

GDC: 10 Innovative Mobile Games
In the GDC session, "World Tour of Mobile Innovations," mobile execs Matthew Bellows and David Collier introduced a sparkling spectrum of bright ideas for mobile games from around the globe.

Moderati Sounding Off at Game Developers Conference Mobile
San Francisco & San Jose, Calif. Sub par sound on mobile games is like muzak in a nightclub. It’s just not the same. To produce appealing sounds for mobile users, developers need to know the latest and greatest technology and standards. Chris Dunn and Haruko Kurata from Moderati, a mobile entertainment company, will co-lead a session on the merits of mobile audio technology, entitled “Mobile DLS: Creating Customized Game Sounds with Downloadable Sound Technology.”

Gameloft Secures Mobile Game Rights for "Mission: Impossible III"
NEW YORK ­ Gameloft, a leading developer and publisher of games for mobile phones, today announced it has signed an exclusive agreement with Viacom Consumer Products, Inc. to develop, publish and distribute the wireless game version of one of the most highly anticipated action adventure films of the year, "Mission: Impossible III," starring Tom Cruise and directed by J.J. Abrams ("Lost," "Alias"). The film is produced by Cruise and Paula Wagner.

N-Gage Mobile Games to be Played on Smartphones
March 21, 2006 (Watford UK) -- At the E3 gaming expo at LA, Nokia announced plans for making N-Gage mobile games playable on more of its smartphones. As part of its initiative in this direction, a range of devices would be made available for playing of high quality 3D mobile games.

GDC: Nokia commits to the evolution of mobile gaming
In his GDC keynote speech, Nokia's director of games publishing, Greg Sauter, has outlined the company's commitment to the future of mobile gaming and stressed the importance of enhancing the end-user's wireless experience.

GDC: Mobile carriers urge developers to innovate more
Speaking at the Game Developers Conference, a panel of representatives from leading mobile carriers have urged developers to focus on producing better quality titles rather than expanding their portfolios.

The Future of Mobile Gaming and its Enemies
Mitch Lasky, Senior VP of EA Mobile, gave his keynote address this morning, addressing the problems with the mobile games industry, the possible solutions, and what the EA/Jamdat merger could mean for the market.

Forum Nokia PRO Games Zone to Provide Advanced Support for Next Generation of Nokia Mobile Gaming
SAN JOSE, California, March 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Nokia today announced the launch of its new Forum Nokia PRO Games Zone, providing mobile developer companies seeking to tap into the $2.43 billion worldwide mobile gaming market with access to advanced knowledge and technical support in the development of games and entertainment for the growing mobile consumer market.

Start-up to wed mobile games with live TV shows
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Dialing into the fast-growing market for mobile games, a San Francisco-based start-up is poised to unveil a new service on Monday that it hopes will make television viewers as hooked to their cellphones as they are to remote controls.

GDC: Carriers: 'Give Us Quality Games'
At the Game Developers Conference today, a panel of leading mobile carriers expressed the belief that mobile game creators must innovate in order to grow the market.

iFone Releases V-Rally 3D For Mobile Phones
iFone, the leading wireless entertainment publisher, and Atari, Inc., a leading global publisher of video games, today announced the launch of ATARI’s V-Rally 3D for mobile phones.

News Briefs for March 20, 2006
News Briefs for March 20, 2006

Namco Networks Expands Presence with Online Retail Store: ClubNAMCO.Com
SAN JOSE, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- March 20, 2006 -- Looking for that exclusive PAC-MAN T-shirt or toy? Building on its mobile game success, Namco Networks, a leading publisher and developer of wireless games and content, today announced that PAC-MAN fans everywhere can purchase exclusive Namco game and character-themed memorabilia from www.clubNAMCO.com.

AirPlay To Wed Live Television with Mobile Gaming to Create New 'AirPlay TV' Experience
MONTEREY, Calif., March 20 -- AirPlay announced today it will launch a new "AirPlay TV" experience this fall that has the power to transform millions of television viewers into active participants in live television programs. While they watch, viewers can use their cell phones as gaming devices to choose winners and losers in reality television programs, compete against contestants in game shows and even predict plays in football games and other sporting events.

Tira Wireless to Add Support for Microsoft Windows Mobile to Tira Jump Product Suite
SAN FRANCISCO—March 20, 2006— GDC Mobile 2006— Tira Wireless, the premier provider of advanced technology for mobile content deployment, today announced that it will be adding support for Microsoft Windows Mobile to the Tira Jump Product Suite. With broad support for multiple mobile operating systems and content types, users of the Tira Jump Product Suite will be able to quickly adapt and manage mobile content for deployment on diverse handsets available in the market today. The Windows Mobile platform powers more than 100 devices available worldwide from mobile operators such as Cingular, Orange, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile.

Kohnke Communications signs Hudson Entertainment
Leading Interactive Entertainment PR Agency to Represent Console Gaming and Mobile Entertainment Publishing Pioneer

Falcon Mobile Inc. releases Bimmer Street Racing 3D
Falcon Mobile Inc. releases Bimmer Street Racing 3D.

The Elder Scrolls® IV: Oblivion for Mobile Phones
Set in a rich and diverse fantasy world, Oblivion™ is the definitive fantasy game for mobile phones!

Hudson Soft and Living Mobile release Bomberman Pinball
Hudson Soft and Living Mobile release Bomberman Pinball.

Superscape Mobile Games Available on Rogers
Titles from Superscape Group plc, a leading publisher of 3D Mobile Games, are now available for download from the Rogers Communications Network.

YOUR WORLD GAMES’ UNVEILS GPS AND COMPETITIVE GAMING FUNCTIONS OF UPCOMING MOBILE TITLE THE SHROUD
LAKE MARY, FL – March 24, 2006 – Your World Games, a mobile games publisher at the forefront of emerging technology, today disclosed the GPS elements and the creation of the International Farmers League (IFL) for their upcoming wireless title, “The Shroud.” Using patented GPS technology, players with compatible phones will be challenged in a one-of-a-kind gameplay experience that has them move from one challenge to the next in the real world. The IFL will allow players to embark on special challenges where the high scores will be posted to a worldwide leaderboard. Both the GPS and IFL complement an already deep and engaging RPG adventure experience.

Hong Kong China Unicom Adds 1.17 Million Subscribers In Feb
HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- Mobile phone services operator China Unicom Ltd. said Sunday it added 1.17 million subscribers in February, bringing its total mobile customers to 130.27 million.

Ukraine’s mobile services revenue up 46.3% on year in Jan-Feb
KIEV, Mar 17 (Prime-Tass) -- Ukranian mobile operators took in 2.564 billion hryvnas in revenues in January-February, or 46.3% up on the year, Ukraine?s State Statistics Committee said Friday.

2006 Will Be the Year of Mobile Advertising Experimentation
Europe : As advertisers and operators seek out the best business model, 2006 will be a year of experimentation for the emerging mobile advertising market. The next five years will see a shift by major brands from simple SMS mobile marketing to more sophisticated multimedia advertising. By 2007, brands will know what works, and mobile advertising will become mainstream by 2008. These are some of the key findings from visiongain's new report, entitled "Mobile advertising and marketing: Market analysis and forecasts 2006-2011".

Vodafone Hits 10 Million 3G Mobile Users
Europe : When Vodafone launched 3G services in November 2004, the Company announced that it expected over 10 million customers to be using Vodafone live! with 3G by 31 March 2006. Vodafone today announces that this target has been achieved.

MSN Messenger and Hotmail Come To 3G Phones
Europe : Microsoft and 3 Group announced plans to deliver seamless access to Microsoft’s communication services, MSN® Messenger and MSN® Hotmail, through the 3 portal and installed software clients on 3G handsets.

Mobile Entertainment Europe release Mr. Schizoo 2
Mobile Entertainment Europe announces the release of "Mr. Schizoo 2" - a new game from development studio, Gameleons.

Telcogames presents Captain Dynamo for Symbian Phones
Telcogames is proud to present their latest Symbian title, the classic Codemasters title Captain Dynamo.

Superscape Mobile Games Now Available on the Rogers Communications Network In Canada
HOOK, England, March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Superscape Group plc (LSE: SPS), the world's leading publisher of 3D mobile games, announces that a number of its titles are now available for download from the Rogers Communications network.

2006 Will Be the Year of Mobile Advertising Experimentation
As advertisers and operators seek out the best business model, 2006 will be a year of experimentation for the emerging mobile advertising market according to a report from VisionGain. The next five years will see a shift by major brands from simple SMS mobile marketing to more sophisticated multimedia advertising. By 2007, brands will know what works, and mobile advertising will become mainstream by 2008.

CORRECTING and REPLACING Oasys Mobile Partners with Selatra to Offer More Than 600 Games for Mobile Phones
Oasys Mobile, Inc., formerly Summus, Inc. (OTCBB: OYSM), a leading provider of premium mobile media content, products and services, today announced a partnership with Selatra, a global distributor of mobile entertainment content, to offer consumers 600 games for their mobile phones on OasysMobile.com. With this partnership, OasysMobile.com offers a broad selection of games in many different categories for cellphones. Consumers can buy, store and keep their games on OasysMobile.com even if they upgrade or lose their cellphones.

World Cup 06 Comes to Mobile!!
MobVision today announces the launch of their World Cup 06 mobile content.

Fox Mobile Entertainment and I-play release “24” The Mobile Game
Mobile users worldwide now have the chance to accept a high priority, time-sensitive assignment from CTU agent Jack Bauer, as the mobile game version of the hit television series “24™” launches this week. I-play, the mobile games company, and strategic partner of Fox Mobile Entertainment, unveils one of the market's most desirable licenses – “24™” – following the widely-anticipated launch of the 5th season of the hit TV series.

Living Mobile releases 3D Autobahn Racer
Living Mobile releases 3D Autobahn Racer, the continuation of "Autobahn Racer". Choose your favourit from many different cars and show your rivals the backlights!

Clickgamer extends Cutting EDGE Coding Competition 2006
Clickgamer Ltd, an industry leading D2C retailer, announces some major changes in the running "Cutting EDGE Coding Competition 2006" organised around the EDGE mobile game engine.

HeroCraft releases Blind Fury
HeroCraft, a well-known indie developer of games for mobile phones releases Blind Fury

HeroCraft releases Arcade Park vol. 1
HeroCraft, a well-known indie developer of games for mobile phones releases Arcade Park vol. 1. The first part of the collection of dynamic and fascinating arcade games created after legendary hits of past years. It includes Arcade Ball, Asteroids and Rushman.

Nokia presents solutions to drive growth of next generation of mobile gaming at GDC Mobile
Espoo, Finland, March 14, 2006 - Nokia, the Platinum sponsor of GDC Mobile, is pleased to announce that Gregg Sauter, Director of Games Publishing, Nokia, will make a mobile games platform speech at the GDC Mobile sponsored lunch keynote session on Monday 20th March at 1.00pm, at the Fairmont Hotel, Main Ballroom - The Regency 1 & 2, San José, California.

Nival Interactive, Inc. Expands Its Video Game Development Capabilities with U.S.-based Headquarters and Western Management Team
LOS ANGELES, March 14 /PRNewswire/ -- In a first ever move for an Eastern
European game company, Nival Interactive, Inc. (http://www.nival.com), today
announced it has established its global headquarters in the United States and
recruited an executive management team comprised of American video game
industry professionals, including Kevin Bachus, co-creator of Microsoft's
Xbox, as chief executive officer. The changes are part of the company's plan
to expand in the computer, video and mobile game markets by offering its
partners superior products with global commercial appeal at a significantly
lower production cost.

UI Magic Launches New Mobile Games Developed by Shanghai NetVillage
SAN DIEGO, CA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 03/14/2006 -- UI Magic, Inc. ( www.uimagicinc.com), an emerging wireless technology and platform services company today announced that it has launched new mobile games developed by its strategic partner Net Village's subsidiary Shanghai Net Village. NetVillage Co. Ltd. and UI Magic, Inc. jointly announced that the alliance began distributing four titles of the game contents developed by Shanghai NV through UI Magic's "mtogo" portal site. UI Magic and NetVillage formed strategic alliance in November of 2005 which involved capital investment in the former by the latter, and this is the first material commercial operation stemming from the alliance. The two will continue to launch more contents and services through the "mtogo" portal site as well as through the US telecom carriers and aim to aggressively grow the mobile content distribution business in the North American market.

Movistar aims for 500,000 net adds
Mobile operator Movistar Chile, the local unit of Spain's Telefónica Móviles, expects to close 2006 with 5.8 million subscribers, meaning 500,000 net adds during the year, local newspaper El Mercurio reported.

Motorola Razr Reappears In Some Cingular, T-Mobile Stores
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (AP)--Motorola's popular Razr phone was back in Cingular and T-Mobile stores this week, making a limited reappearance after the two wireless companies temporarily stopped selling the phones because of a manufacturing defect.

Kayak Interactive and Synergenix Interactive Unite as BLAZE; Mobile Entertainment Developer and Publisher Launch New Global Corporate Brand Identity
SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 13, 2006--Kayak Interactive today announced that after fully consolidating with European wholly-owned subsidiary Synergenix Interactive and the successful integration of the mobile games publisher Chasma, the company has named its new self BLAZE and can be found at www.blaze.com. Acquired by Kayak Interactive in February 2005, Synergenix had been operating under its own name for the past year. BLAZE headquarters will remain in San Mateo, Calif. with European operations in Stockholm, Sweden. The company also has offices in London, England.

MFORMA Mobile Gaming Launches WPT 7-Card Stud
Mobile gaming company MFORMA just added World Poker Tour: 7-Card Stud to its wireless games library. Building on the success of World Poker Tour: Texas Hold 'Em, which became one of the company's most popular titles almost immediately after its launch last year, MFORMA is introducing this new title just in time for Fathers Day. With cutting-edge graphics and advanced multi-player capability--meaning you can play in real-time with fellow poker enthusiasts from all over the world--this is the latest thing in on-the-go poker.

Commonwealth Games On Mobile TV
Telstra, Microsoft and Broadcast Australia have announced plans for Melbourne's first live demonstration showcase of mobile TV, as part of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. The Melbourne showcase service will broadcast up to seven channels of live Commonwealth Games coverage including Channel Nine coverage of the Games on specially enabled Windows Mobile handheld devices.

Motorola to support Vivo's 3G network expansion
US mobile phone manufacturer Motorola has pledged support as a 3G network supplier for Brazil's largest mobile phone operator Vivo, Motorola said in a statement.

New LG 3G u900 for 3 Italy
Europe Italy : LG Electronics said it has agreed to supply its LG-U900 mobile phone, which supports the digital video broadcasting handheld ( DVB-H ) standard, to Italian mobile telecommunications service provider, Hutchison.

New Samsung SGH-Z400 3G Phone
Europe : Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. demonstrated its commitment for global mobile phone market, showcasing Samsung's hero 3G and 2.5G handsets with the latest design and technology at CeBIT 2006.

Gaming the Market
Videogame makers are struggling to cope with the once-every-five-years transition to new platforms.

InAphone Group Signs Mobile Content Deal for Exclusive Girls Brand
Copenhagen, – InAphone Group, a leader in developing and publishing mobile content, today announces ILI – ‘I love it’ girls mobile content. ILI has licensed the rights to InAphone Group to create and publish mobile phone games, videos, ringtones, themes and wallpapers for the fashion brand. ILI sees the entry into mobile content as an exciting opportunity and views licensing as an integral part of its marketing mix. As a part of the license agreement, InAphone Group will offer distribution of officially licensed ILI content for 3rd party mobile storefronts and market the content via ILI promotional material.

Enpocket Launches Total Football -- The Ultimate Soccer Application For The Mobile Phone
HANNOVER, Germany, March 9, 200 -- CeBIT -- Enpocket, the global mobile media Company, today launched "Total Football." Total Football puts detailed statistics and scores at football fanatics' fingertips. The application is now available, for the first time, on a range of BenQ-Siemens handsets.

Kyocera expects 50% handset revenue growth in 2006
US CDMA mobile handset manufacturer Kyocera Wireless aims to grow its sales in Brazil by 50% in 2006 compared to 2005, Fabio Castanheira, Kyocera's general manager in Brazil, told BNamericas.

LG expects 80% jump in handset sales in 2006
The Brazilian division of South Korean electronics colossus LG expects to record an 80% jump in mobile phone sales to 6.3 million units in 2006 from 3.5 million in 2005, LG announced at the Telexpo in São Paulo.

Telcogames Secures Licensing Deal With Jaleco
London (UK) & Tokyo (Japan) 10 March 2006. Mobile games publisher and distributor, Telcogames has acquired exclusive rights from Jaleco (JASDAQ 7954), the Japanese arcade and console games publishing house, to publish Jaleco’s 1990’s Ninja Jajamaru Kun and Rod-Land console blockbusters for Smartphone platforms.

M:Metrics: Games Consumption Holds Steady At 6 Million
M:Metrics has found that as the prices and selection of mobile games climb, while consumption has remained consistent, with between 5 and 6 million mobile subscribers downloading at least one mobile game per month, over the past year. The firm found that carriers have increased their game portfolios since September. National carriers have added on average of about 59 titles to the storefront on the leading devices used to download content over a five month period since September 2005. Yet, despite a broader selection of game titles, consumer's appetites for then is largely unchanged.

HeroCraft releases Winter Lines
HeroCraft, a well-known indie developer of games for mobile phones in cooperation with Dymanic Pixels releases new J2ME game.

Nextra Games present Mobasta
Nextra Games present its new logical adventure game – “Mobasta”.

Xing Mobile releases Jewel Explorer and Jewel Shooter
Xing Interactive's mobile division announces the release of Jewel Explorer and Jewel Shooter, a double treat of jewel challenge for your mobile phone.

OrangePixel releases RocketBoy
RocketBoy continues the line of OneThumb games that OrangePixel started with their casual game Toddlers. In RocketBoy the limits of OneThumb/OneTouch gaming are slightly extended with a more action packed game, however the easy OneThumb controlls and gameplay remain.

Online Casino Offers Million Pound Mobile Prize
Wild Jack Mobile Casino (WJMC) has announced the release of ‘Major Millions’, a progressive jackpot slot games with an unprecedented maximum jackpot for a mobile game of £1 million.

Access over 200 Million European Mobile Subscribers in 24 Hours with the World's 1st Self-Service Premium Content Delivery Portal
The world's first self-provisioning, mobile content delivery portal was launched today by Echovox. SMSconnect.com(TM) makes it easy for anyone, from an established content owner to a start-up in the US, to gain access to the exploding European mobile content market in under 24 hours.

Feature: 'Bite-Sized Pieces of Mobile Fun: I-Play CEO David Gosen on Mobile Game Design'
In this exclusive interview with Gamasutra and the final feature for today, I-Play CEO David Gosen discusses the independent mobile game publisher and developer's fundamental strategies, the need for education, and the future of the mobile games market in general.

KISSY-I the next hit for mobile downloads
MOffY brings "KISSY-I" to wireless platforms, a step further license for the characters developed by Prime Licensing Corp, the Licensing Agent of Barunson for Kissy-I in Southeast Asia.

0.85-Inch HD Media Adopted in Toshiba’s Mobile Phone
ASIA Japan : Showa Denko K.K.’s (SDK) 0.85-inch-diameter hard disk media, the smallest in the world, has been adopted by Toshiba Corporation in its latest mobile phone “MUSIC-HDD W41T”.

I-Play Riding Mobile Mass Market Wave
In this week's Mobile Focus Modojo speaks with former Nintendo Europe MD and current I-Play CEO David Gosen. I-Play believes that mobile gaming is going to become a true mass market business, so much so that the console space will be considered the niche market.

PopCap(TM)'s Bejeweled(R) 2 and Zuma(R) Featured on New Ultra-Mobile PCs
EATTLE, March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- PopCap Games®, the leading developer and publisher of casual games for the Web, PC, mobile phones and other digital entertainment platforms, today announced that several of its most popular games, including Bejeweled® 2, Zuma®, and Bookworm®, have been optimized for the new Ultra-Mobile PCs announced today by Microsoft®, Intel®, and other industry partners. Two of PopCap's Ultra-Mobile PC-optimized titles will also be showcased in the Microsoft and Intel booths (#A38 Hall 4 and #C46 Hall 2, respectively) at CeBIT, the world's largest IT and technology trade show being held this week in Hannover, Germany. Trial versions of these games will be preinstalled on Ultra-Mobile PCs from several leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs); customers will be able to purchase the full version of these games directly from Microsoft via its MSN Games online portal. Future Ultra-Mobile PC-enhanced games will be available for download directly from PopCap Games at www.popcap.com.

Gartner: 102 million handsets sold in LatAm 2005
Sales of mobile phones in Latin America reached nearly 102 million units in 2005, a 40% increase from 2004, according to a new study from international consultancy Gartner.

Seminario: Industria de Videojuegos en Uruguay
Seminario, 7 de Marzo de 2006

"Advergaming e Industria del Juego en Uruguay"

Descripción: Advergaming e Industria del Juego en Uruguay

El desarrollo de juegos de computador para la promoción de productos e ideas (advergaming)es actualmente una de las principales actividades productivas en la industria de juegos nacional.

Los juegos PC autónomos, juegos Web, y los juegos para teléfonos celulares son un área de desarrollo creciente en el mercado del software creado en el Uruguay.

Si bien los productos son normalmente contratados fuera de fronteras por firmas como Phillips, Cartoon Network y candidatos presidenciales de Estados Unidos entre otros; su concepción, diseño y producción son nacionales, involucrando una cantidad creciente de profesionales de áreas tan disímiles como la programación, diseño visual, diseño acústico, ingeniería de software, aseguramiento de la calidad del producto e inteligencia artificial, entre otras.

Escucharemos a dos referentes en la producción de juegos de computador nacionales, para Web y celulares comentando sus experiencias y exponiendo brevemente sus productos, se comentará acerca de los equipos de desarrollo, los desafíos y las expectativas en el área.

Con motivo del lanzamiento del GameLab, una iniciativa de investigación, desarrollo y homologación de juegos de computador en la Universidad ORT, comienza un ciclo de charlas vinculadas al área que se publicitarán por esta vía. Esta es la primer charla del ciclo.

Exponen:

A/S Fernando Sansberro
Fernando Sansberro es Analista en Sistemas, graduado de la Universidad ORT Uruguay y cuenta mas de diez años de experiencia en el desarrollo de aplicaciones. Ha trabajado en los últimos años como desarrollador de juegos freelance para varios estudios de videojuegos, utilizando Flash, Director y Java. Es fundador de Batovi Games Studio, uno de los principales desarrolladores de juegos móviles en América del Sur.

Lic Sofía Bategazzore (Powerfull Robot Games)
Sofía Battegazzore es directora Powerful Robot Games. Luego de una
trayectoria en el medio publicitario local, a partir del año 2000
comienza a trabajar como artista de videojuegos freelance para clientes en Estados Unidos. En el año 2002, co-funda Powerful Robot Games, donde se desempeña primero como directora artística y actualmente como directora. Sus juegos han sido expuestos en galerías y museos de E.E.U.U., Europa y Australia.


Entrada: Libre
Organiza: Escuela de Tecnología - Facultad de Ingeniería
E-mail de contacto:

Ubicación: - 7 de Marzo de 2006 en Sala de seminarios *centro* - Cuareim 1451
Horario: 18:30 hs. a 21:30 hs.

THQ acquires Juice Games Ldt.
THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) announced it has expanded its global studio system by acquiring its first European-based development studio, Juice Games Ltd. The UK-based studio has recently developed the critically-acclaimed Juiced ™ for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox® videogame system from Microsoft and Windows PC, and is redefining the handheld racing genre by bringing the franchise to the PSP® portable entertainment system in Summer 2006 with the PSP® exclusive, Juiced ™ : Eliminator .

IN-FUSIO brings "Asterix and the Vikings" to mobile phones
IN-FUSIO, leader in mobile phone entertainment, announced the signing of a license agreement with Editions Albert René. According to this agreement IN-FUSIO will launch a new mobile-phone game based on the upcoming 8th Asterix®-animation-movie “Asterix® and the Vikings®” in April.

OrangePixel presents BlackParodius
The new lineup of games from OrangePixel starts with BlackParodius.

Breakpoint releases "Codename: Havoc"
Codename: Havoc, the new shooter from Breakpoint, hits the market.

JavArt releases “Pinocchio - the adventures of a Marionette”
JavArt is proud to announce the release of Pinocchio – the adventure of a Marionette.

M:Metrics: Games Consumption Holds Steady at 6 Million
SEATTLE, WA -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 03/06/2006 -- M:Metrics, the mobile market authority, has found that as the prices and selection of mobile games climb, consumption has remained consistent, with between 5 and 6 million mobile subscribers downloading at least one mobile game per month, over the past year.

Explosive Growth Continues for India's Mobile-Phone Market
How fast is India's mobile-phone market growing? So fast that Indian wireless carriers added approximately 4.7 million new subscribers in January alone, a new high mark for mobile-phone service growth in the nation, according to iSuppli Corp. So fast that the nation's mobile-phone subscriber base in 2005 grew at an astounding rate of 47 percent to reach approximately 75.3 million at the end of 2005, up from 48 million at the end of 2004.

Just How Did Motorola Make the RAZR V3 So Thin?
In its latest Insight on Ultra-Slim phones, Strategy Analytics uncovered the secrets of the Motorola RAZR V3, comparing the thickness of the majority of ultra-slim clamshell phones. The success of the RAZR, and the growing trend by other vendors to introduce similar devices, are discussed in a report from the company. This report also includes an expose of NEC's e949/L1, which was introduced in December 2005 and has a thickness of just 11.9mm.The modular approach taken by NEC has enabled them to make the thinnest clamshell phone yet to incorporate a camera.

Pollex and ArcSoft Join Forces for the Development of Multimedia Capabilities for Cellular Handsets
Beijing- Pollex recently announced that it has successfully ported two of ArcSoft’s major application suites, Multimedia Player and PhotoBase, onto its OPNA mobile software platform. ArcSoft, Inc. is a leading developer and provider of multimedia software and firmware solutions for personal computers, mobile devices and consumer electronics manufacturers.

Motorola Cant Meet Demand For RAZR Handsets
Speaking at a recent Merrill Lynch conference, Ron Garriques, President of Mobile Devices Division at Motorola, noted that the company is still having trouble meeting demand for their iconic RAZR handset.

Orange, Sony Ericsson In Joint Marketing Agreement
LONDON -(Dow Jones)- Orange, the mobile telecommunications arm of France Telecom, has signed a joint marketing partnership with Sony Ericsson to promote the manufacturer's Walkman-branded music handsets.

Over 40 Million Subscribers Shortly for South Africa
South Africa's Vodacom says that it has had to add an additional number range to the current number ranges, including 082, 072 and 076, to make room for its growing family of subscribers. As from 1 March 2006, Vodacom added the 079 number range to its network, making sure that there is sufficient capacity for future growth.

3G V-girl Goes Live with Taiwan Mobile
ASIA : Hong Kong based Artificial Life, a provider of leading edge mobile technology and applications today announced that it has successfully launched the Taiwanese version of multiple award winning 3G product “V-girl™ - your virtual girlfriend” with Taiwan Mobile Co Ltd.

Sagem's First 3G Handset
Europe France : Sagem Communication continues to step up its range of multimedia devices with the new 3G/UMTS myW-7 mobile handset.

Global 3G Wallchart
Europe UK : 3G has been slow to arrive, but next generation cellular networks are finally being widely deployed and new networks continue to come online. There are now some 50 million 3G subscribers worldwide, with live services spread across 40 countries. To help keep abreast of this rapidly evolving market, ARCchart, the London-based wireless research and consulting firm, has launched its first Global 3G wallchart, providing coverage of all 3G operators around the globe.

Siemens Mobile TV kicks Off
Europe : Soccer goes mobile: The Soccer World Cup will be the test run for television on the mobile phone, with the breakthrough onto the mass market expected to take place by the next Olympic Games in 2008, at the latest. But visitors to CeBIT can already try out mobile television at the trade fair. On Stand A31 in Hall 26, Siemens will be giving a live demonstration of how everything works, and what innovations the mobile phone user can expect. Among other things, it will be showing that mobile radio can do more than simply bring TV to a small screen. With mobile phone connections acting as the return channel, mobile phone TV becomes interactive, and viewers can directly participate in the program.

QUALCOMM's BREW(R) Solution Continues Strong Momentum with Leading CDMA Operators in Latin America
SAN DIEGO, March 6 -- QUALCOMM Incorporated (Nasdaq: QCOM), a leading developer and innovator of Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and other advanced wireless technologies, today announced a number of significant milestones highlighting the success of the BREW solution amongst wireless operators in Latin America. Iusacell in Mexico, Movilnet in Venezuela and VIVO in Brazil, have all reached significant milestones for cumulative application downloads since launch. These achievements demonstrate the impact of QUALCOMM's BREW solution on the wireless data market in Latin America and globally.

Business: Small screen, BIG picture
It will be a decisive year for new multimedia services and growing markets for the telecommunications companies, writes ANNIE FREEDA CRUEZ, who attended the recent 2006 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona.

The Top 10-Selling Phones in February 2006.
The Swedish manufacturer of carrying cases for portable electronics, Krusell, has released their "Top 10"-list for February 2006. The list is based upon the number of pieces of model specific mobile phone cases that have been ordered from Krusell during February 2006. Krusell's list is unique due to the fact that it reflects the sales of mobile phones on six continents and in more than 50 countries around the globe.

Telefónica Móviles 2005 investments up 41.3%
Spanish mobile phone group Telefónica Móviles increased investments 41.3% in 2005 to 2.3bn euros (US$2.7bn) compared to 2004 with the lion's share going to operations in Brazil and Spain, Spanish news wire EFE reported.

Protecting Kids From Adult Content On Phones
Singapore's three mobile operators - M1, SingTel and StarHub - have announced the launch of a voluntary code to self-regulate mobile content in Singapore. The initiative is in response to concerns about minors having easy access to undesirable content on their mobile phones. Jointly developed by the three mobile operators, the code works on the general principle that mobile content should be consistent with material that is available on an unrestricted basis from other mainstream media to the general public.

Mobile base grows with 1.5 million new clients
Chilean mobile operators sold 1.5 million new mobile lines during 2005 to reach a total client base of 11.3 million users, up nearly 14% compared to end-2004, local newspaper El Mercurio reported, citing statistics provided by operators.

Vivendi makes €2bn and rewards investors
French media group Vivendi surprised investors with a larger than expected dividend yesterday and signalled it is hunting for acquisitions that will give it new digital revenue streams. Vivendi, whose assets include Universal Music, the Canal Plus pay TV business and France's second biggest mobile operator, SFR, announced a €2.1bn (£1.4bn) profit for 2005. The result was due to better than expected profits from its business units and increased contribution from investments such as NBC. Revenues rose 7% to €19.5bn.

Verizon Wirless offers snowboarding mobile games
Verizon Wireless is cashing in on some of the hype remaining from the Winter Olympics; the company announced a number of snowboarding games available to its customers with V CAST-enabled phones. The company offers games such as 3D Extreme Air Snowboarding by Digital Chocolate, Massive Snowboarding by Gameloft, and FINAL FANTASY VII Snowboarding by Square Enix.

The Future Is Coming On Gorillaz Entertainment System
In 2000, Gorillaz hit the scene as the world’s first cartoon band. Today, the Grammy-winning group announced another first, the debut of Gorillaz Entertainment System. The game is a new exclusive arcade title from RealNetworks®, Inc. (Nasdaq: RNWK) and will be available on phones in April 2006.

New Vivendi games unit goes mobile
Vivendi is going mobile with a brand new division, Vivendi Universal Games Mobile, headed by president Paul Maglione. Maglione discusses porting costs, IP and who will control cell phone "decks."

Esurance and AvantGo Team Up to Bring College Hoops to Mobile Devices
DUBLIN and SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., March 1 -- The month of March means two things -- spring is around the corner and the college basketball tournament is here. Smartphone and personal digital assistant (PDA) users won't miss a second of the action thanks to Esurance(R), sponsor of this year's AvantGo(R) College Basketball National Tournament channel. Now in its fourth year, the 2006 College Basketball mobile Web site, sponsored by Esurance, provides all of the exciting tournament action, delivering game-day information directly to users' mobile devices wirelessly or via desktop synchronization.

Pirate Poppers™ released
Climb aboard for some swashbucklin' pirate popping fun! Aim your cannonballs to clear away menacing chains and unlock trinkets and jewels that rain down from above. Begin as a lowly Landlubber and plunder your way up the ranks! Do you have what it takes to become a Living Legend?

This is a game made in Uruguay, from our friends of Mystery Studio and it is published by PlayFirst. Congratulations Gabriel and Esteban!!!

MForma Sued By Yahoo! Over Trade Secrets
Mobile game and entertaiment firm MForma has been sued by Internet giant Yahoo!, which alleges that seven former Yahoo! employees now working at MForma are using trade secrets developed at Yahoo! in their work at the mobile game creator, according to an Associated Press report.

Samsung Launches First TD-SCDMA Handset
Philips, Samsung and T3G have announced that they are bringing TD-SCDMA handsets to the Chinese market. The Samsung video phone, announced in August 2005 is available now and has already been experienced by Huang Ju, China's Vice Premier. The Samsung video phone is the world's first handset to utilise China's newly developed TD-SCDMA network. The dual-mode Samsung video phone, which combines Philips EDGE Nexperia cellular system solution 6120 with a TD-SCDMA processor developed by Philips and T3G and a protocol stack developed by T3G, will be available on China's 3G network as soon as operator licenses are granted, most likely in Q2 2006.

NEWS SNAP: Telefonica 4Q Net Profit +52%, Spain Still Grows
MADRID -(Dow Jones)- Telefonica, Wednesday posted a 52% jump in fourth-quarter net profit, boosted by several Latin American acquisitions and Internet-driven revenue growth in its key Spanish fixed-line division.

Sonae confirms bid for control of Vivo
Portuguese industrial conglomerate Sonae SGPS has clarified that a desire for control of Brazilian mobile group Vivo is one of the considerations in its recently proposed takeover of Vivo shareholder Portugal Telecom, according to a note to Portugal's stock market regulator CMVM on Monday.

Unefon revenues decline 10% in 2005
Mexico's fourth placed mobile operator Unefon saw revenues fall 10% in 2005 to 4.0bn pesos (US$382mn) from 4.4bn pesos in 2004, the company said in a statement.

Nokia Opens Mexico Handset Factory
Nokia has opened the expansion to its Reynosa, Tamaulipas plant in Mexixo, which is intended to boost its mobile-device production. With an investment of more than US$50 million, the expansion provides greater capacity and flexibility to meet the requirements of Nokia's customers in Mexico, Latin and North America. The new facility is located near the present Nokia factory in Reynosa.

Top Six Vendors Drive Worldwide Mobile Phone Sales in 2005
Worldwide mobile phone sales totaled 816.6 million units in 2005, a 21% increase from 2004, as the leading six vendors increased their share of the market at the detriment of smaller vendors, according to Gartner. The top six vendors accounted for 79.4% of worldwide mobile phone sales in 2005. These leaders experienced a steady increase in market share throughout the year, as their market share increased from 78% in the first quarter to 84% in the fourth quarter of 2005.

Mobile Data Services set to score at World Cup
Ceon, a provider of service fulfilment software for next generation IP-based services has revealed the findings of an NOP survey examining consumer attitudes towards mobile digital services at the Football World Cup. With kick-off less than four months away, the survey of more than 800 mobile phone users has shown that for the right price, consumers will embrace a whole range of technology to follow the results and coverage of the games.

Filao Presents the First SUDOKU for All Mobile Devices
PARIS--Feb. 28, 2006-- Filao, the world's largest publisher of high quality consumer software on Memory Cards and by download, presents its already successful brand new game: SUDOKU

Palm Canada Launches Mobifest -- Canada's First Mobile Film Festival
TORONTO, March 1 - Palm Canada today announced the launch of Mobifest -- Canada's first mobile film festival, created to recognize excellence and innovation in made-for-mobile films. The international competition is the first film festival of its kind, in that it is exclusively mobile - all film content is shot and created specifically for the "small screen" - either for a mobile phone, smartphone or other handheld device. Online voting will determine the winners in each of three categories from a pool of finalists that have been pre-chosen by a panel of judges.

New Walkman Handset From SonyEricsson
Sony Ericsson has expanded its growing line-up of Walkman phones with the W300, a quad band EDGE clamshell which aims to bring the mobile phone Walkman experience to an even greater market. With the announcement of the W300 Sony Ericsson has now launched a total of seven Walkman phones, targeted at different customer needs and life-style choices. From high-end UMTS models aimed at users who want to enjoy over-the-air downloads, high-speed email and internet connectivity to models targeting more casual music listeners such as the W600 and W800, Sony Ericsson aims to create a Walkman mobile phone for everyone, everywhere.

New Vodafone 3G Handset
Vodafone Japan has announced the Vodafone 904SH by Sharp, the first mobile handset to feature a VGA liquid crystal display (LCD). The 904SH is scheduled to go on sale in late April 2006 as a new 3G handset. The 904SH's VGA LCD has four times the resolution of current QVGA LCDs, making it possible to reproduce visuals and render small characters with more vividness and clarity than before.

Smartphone Forecast: Shipments to More Than Double in 2006
Smartphones' premium prices and "supersized" form factors have historically combined with a limited demand for advanced data services to restrict them to "niche market" status. But 2006 will bring a growth spurt in the smartphone market that will see worldwide shipments more than double. The 123 million units that ABI Research forecasts will be shipped this year will give smartphones nearly a 15% share of the mobile phone market, according to its recent study.

Russia’s Yeniseitelecom mobile user base up to 1 mln
MOSCOW, Feb 28 (Prime-Tass) -- The subscriber base of Russia?s regional mobile operator Yeniseitelecom has increased to 1 million users as of now from 970,000 users as of February 1, the company said in a press release Tuesday.