More on Facebook Deals: Will Include Only Social Experiences, May Use Credits
A test version of the new Facebook Deals product will launch shortly, as has been reported and assumed for some time. NetworkEffect spoke to Facebook and people familiar with Facebook’s plans about how...
View ArticleWarner Bros. Tries More Facebook Movies and a New Price
Warner Bros. has expanded its Facebook movie rental experiment. Earlier this month, Time Warner’s studio started letting Facebook users watch “The Dark Knight” on the social network for $3. Now it has...
View ArticleFlixster Update: Warner Bros. Very Interested, as Yahoo Drops Out of Bidding...
Recently, BoomTown reported that Flixster–the popular social movie site whose brands include the Rotten Tomatoes premium reviews site–was in early acquisition discussions with several suitors. Now,...
View ArticleFacebook's Response to Groupon Launching Tonight? Probably!
Facebook will be introducing its response to the group-buying phenomenon tonight when it rolls out deals in five cities around midnight. The timing of the launch leaked out early when the New York...
View ArticlePayPal Acquisition Hints at Company's Approach to the Mobile Wallet
EBay-owned PayPal said in February it will conduct several pilot programs over the next year to enable consumers to use their PayPal accounts–at the register. But it didn’t say how it would overcome...
View ArticleFacebook Lets Users Earn Credits by Watching Commercials
Advertising start-ups such as SocialVibe, TrialPay and Sharethrough are today announcing they are part of a new Facebook Credits program that will allow users to earn virtual currency by watching video...
View ArticleUpdated: Facebook Credits Goes Global With Additional Support in 13 Countries
Update: A Facebook spokesperson clarified that it was already these 13 markets, however, they will now be offering additional payment methods through Live Gamer that were not previously available. The...
View ArticleA Sneak Peek at Zynga's IPO: How to Turn Virtual Goods Into Real Money
With Zynga’s IPO filing likely to hit any day now, the question is: What will it tell us? When it goes public, the Facebook game developer will be the first major U.S. company supported primarily by...
View ArticleOne More Use for Facebook Credits: Incentives
Facebook Credits initially were used to help pay for virtual goods inside social games, then were used for other digital goods, like movies. Now other companies are leveraging Credits to lure consumers...
View ArticleWhat's Next for Google+ -- Maybe a Social Game Network?
On Tuesday, Google launched one of its biggest social initiatives yet, called the Google+ project. So, what might be next for the aspiring social network? Probably a social game network, and based on...
View ArticleGame Companies Deploy Facebook Credits at the Final Hour
Seven months ago, Facebook warned developers it would require all social games to start processing payments using Facebook Credits starting July 1. Despite the heads-up, a few slackers were still...
View ArticleEven as It Makes Credits Mandatory for Games, Facebook Downplays Its Payment...
On the occasion of Facebook’s preannounced July 1 deadline for game developers to exclusively process payments using Facebook Credits, we paid a visit to the company’s platform and payments executives...
View ArticleZynga Finally Files for IPO to Raise $1 Billion
Zynga, a four-year-old company which has made its riches off selling virtual goods in social games, has filed to raise $1 billion in an IPO. The IPO may potentially rank among the largest of the year,...
View ArticleMicrosoft Drops Into Social Gaming From the Cloud
Microsoft has figured out a way to get into the social games business without having to make a single game. The company instead is focusing on building tools to help other game developers get up and...
View ArticleTrading Card Company Topps Buys Facebook's Gift Card Provider
Topps, the company known for the trading cards from childhood, is expanding into digital goods with the purchase of GMG Entertainment, the gift card provider for Facebook. Terms of the deal were not...
View ArticleVideogames Discover Daily Deals as PopCap's Plants vs. Zombies Sells for Half...
The obvious similarity between Groupon and Zynga is that they are both racing to become the next darling on Wall Street. Both have been exceedingly good at getting big fast, raising tons of cash and at...
View ArticleGilt Groupe Says F-Commerce Stands for Flash Sales and Facebook
Gilt Groupe, an e-commerce and flash sales site, is experimenting with selling items from a range of categories — on Facebook. The New York-based company said Facebook users will be able to go to a...
View ArticleCasino Social Gaming Ringing Up Big Business on Facebook
Facebook games are often compared to gambling because of their addictive qualities — both get consumers to spend a few more dollars to continue playing. So what happens if you cut directly to the chase...
View ArticleGame Companies Using Facebook Credits Even When They Don't Have To
Facebook is now allowing its virtual currency to be used off of its social network, a feature that some game companies are finding valuable as they seek new ways to monetize their own sites. In a blog...
View ArticleFacebook Loses "The Godfather" Exclusive to Google's Game Network
Kabam has chosen to exclusively launch its newest big title, The Godfather: Five Families, on Google’s game network instead of on Facebook. “It was strictly a business decision,” said Kabam’s COO Chris...
View Article