Mobile Phones

Faltering Facebook phone's Europe launch delayed

On 27 May 2013 |0 comments

The European launch of the "Facebook phone" has been delayed following disappointing US sales and negative feedback. The HTC handset runs Facebook's enhan

MWC: Top 10 mobile industry insights from Barcelona bash

On 04 Mar 2013 |0 comments

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Tablets

Nook tablets join Barnes & Noble's UK line-up

On 26 Sep 2012 |0 comments

US book chain Barnes & Noble plans to launch new Nook tablets alongside its e-readers in the UK later this year. They will compete against products

South Korea rules Apple and Samsung infringed patents

On 23 Aug 2012 |0 comments

A South Korean court has ruled that Apple and Samsung both infringed each other's patents on mobile devices. The court imposed a limited ban on national sal

Cameras

Olympus TG-1, toughest ever compact camera?

On 08 May 2012 |0 comments

Waterproof, crushproof, freezeproof Olympus has officially unveiled a compact camera that the manufacturer promises will deliver expert shots at up to 12 m

TIPA Names 2012 Award Winners

On 19 Apr 2012 |0 comments

The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) has announced the winners of its annual Awards for the best photographic and imaging products of 2012. Headlin

Laptops

Google Chrome OS computers updated with faster processors

On 30 May 2012 |1 comments

Google has announced new computers running on its Chrome operating system.   The Samsung-manufactured laptop and desktop PCs include processors base

Apple's Tim Cook rejects idea of laptop-tablet hybrids

On 25 Apr 2012 |0 comments

Apple's boss has dismissed the idea of mixing laptops and tablets into a hybrid product.   Chief executive Tim Cook said the idea of combining the iPa

Other Recent Articles

Amazon signs lease on 210,000 sq ft central London offices

On 31 May 2013 | 0 Comments

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Microsoft 'U-turn' sees Start button back on Windows 8

On 31 May 2013 | 0 Comments

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Apple 1 from 1976 signed by Wozniak sells for $650,000

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Faltering Facebook phone's Europe launch delayed

On 27 May 2013 | 0 Comments

The European launch of the "Facebook phone" has been delayed following disappointing US sales and negative feedback. The HTC handset runs Facebook's enhan

MWC: Top 10 mobile industry insights from Barcelona bash

On 04 Mar 2013 | 0 Comments

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Star Wars: The Old Republic video game players slump

By Anonymous on Wednesday, August 1, 2012 0 comments

Electronic Arts has revealed that the number of people paying to play its online video game Star Wars: The Old Republic has dropped below one million.
 The title is the US firm's biggest investment to date. Launched in December, it initially attracted more than 1.7m subscribers. The firm said the news was "disappointing" adding that it was switching to a new pricing plan which would allow users to access much of the content for free. The news coincided with the firm's first quarter results which showed net income of $201m (£128m), a 5% drop on the same period the previous year. Payment turn-off The President of EA Labels Frank Gibeau said the Star Wars game would still break even so long as it maintained 500,000 subscribers, but admitted that its current performance was "not good enough". "The message from players exiting the game is clear, 40% say they were turned off by the monthly subscription and many indicate they would come back if we offered a free-to-play model," he told analysts, according to a transcript of the conference call provided by the Seeking Alpha financial news site. "Our plan now is to pivot and provide a two-tiered pricing plan, which will make the game more accessible and grow the audience." The new scheme will allow users to explore the online title's first 50 levels at no cost, although they will not have access to all its features.

 Users must pay $15 (£9.50) a month for full access and a monthly allowance of in-game cash to purchase items or advance their progress. In addition the firm is cutting the price that it charges for the game pack that users must buy before being able to access the MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game). Online rivals EA's move comes just under two months before its rival Activision Blizzard releases an update to World of Warcraft. Mists of Pandaria is expected to help boost the title's subscribers above the current level of 10.2 million, securing its place as the most popular MMORPG. Other upcoming big name releases include Arenanet's Guild Wars 2 and Bethesda's Elder Scrolls Online. Competition is intense because analysts say most players are only likely to subscribe to one title at any one time. Other titles that offer free-to-play options include Dungeons and Dragons Online, Lord of the Rings Online and Entropia Universe. "Given the MMORPG landscape in recent years, where pure subscription is becoming a rarity, EA will have been planning to introduce this since before launch, but the drop in subscribers makes it a timely announcement," said Steve Bailey, senior analyst at IHS Games Digest. "It's not necessarily a portent of doom. The title's ongoing performance is now down to EA's ability to engage users with content refreshes, and other aspects of the service." Michael French, editor-in-chief of the games industry trade news site MCV agreed that the problem was not the title's gameplay, but rather convincing the public to keep paying for it. "There are distractions elsewhere and people have become used to playing online titles for free," he said. "What EA needs to do is to attract players back guilt-free by offering the title without charge, and then hope it is compelling enough to encourage them it is worth paying to unlock the additional content."








1 August 2012 Last updated at 10:40 GMT
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19077238

Category: Feature , Gaming News

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