Village Gamer

Future Shop has announced the six Canadian high schools that will be receiving state-of-the-art technology labs through donations totalling $300,000 in 2011. Thanks to the generosity of Future Shop’s Future Generation Tech Lab program, selected schools from across the country in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec will receive $50,000 each to use based on their needs to build new technology classrooms that benefit programs and engagement of students.

“We’re proud of the Future Generation Tech Lab program’s continued support of education in Canada,” said Todd Empey, Vice President of Store Operations, Future Shop. “This is our fourth consecutive year supporting high schools across Canada; the transformations and impact they have for the students and programming is remarkable. I’m looking forward to seeing the unveilings of the new classrooms when they’re completed in September.”

Launched in 2007, the Future Generation Tech Lab program is designed to give back to the communities Future Shop serves and reduce both the digital and economic divide within Canadian high schools. More than 90 high schools applied for a Future Generation Tech Lab donation, double the amount of applicants in 2010.

According to a Student Awards poll conducted by Uthink Online (a subsidiary of StudentAwards.com) on behalf of Future Shop from July 27 – August 13, 2010, 87 per cent of Canadian high school students shared they would take more advantage of technology in school if it were up-to-date and functional. This online survey of 1,000 included Canadian students from grades 10 to 12 demonstrates the need for continuing scholastic support by programs like Future Generation Tech Lab.

The following six high schools were selected to receive $50,000 each through the Future Generation Tech Lab program:

British Columbia

• Burnaby North Secondary School (Burnaby) – As one of the largest high schools in British Columbia, Burnaby North S.S. has only one computer per 18 students. Also, in addition to existing students attending Burnaby North S.S., eight districts send students to participate in the school’s Digital Sound Production and the Film and Broadcast Industry Connect programs. With a large amount of students enrolling in the program, the Future Generation Tech Lab donation is imperative to sustain and expand its services.
• Norkam Secondary School (Kamloops) – The majority of Norkam S.S.’ computers are either donated or refurbished, and quickly deteriorating. The lack of modern technology is affecting key programs like the Video and Media Technology course which has just eight computers and dated video cameras. The Future Generation Tech Lab donation will be used to upgrade the classroom to bring it up-to-date with new computers, editing equipment and creation of a mini-sound state with lighting and a green screen.

Ontario

• St. Joseph’s Catholic High School (Windsor) – Visuals Arts is one of the school’s most popular programs, where classes like photography, graphic design and flash animation create waiting lists each year. Sadly, the four computers and technology used to carry out some of these programs are dated and limit the development of skills for the students. The Future Generation Tech Lab donation will be used to purchase new equipment and provide students with an improved and more creative learning environment.
• Highland Secondary School (Dundas) – A recent theft and vandalism at the school, 45 year-old machinery that was installed the year the school was built and computers almost a decade old, will soon be upgraded thanks to the Future Generation Tech Lab program. Highland S.S. plans to use the donation money to build a cross-curricular program that features an integrated learning hub for students interested in communications, machinery and Custom Car Design and Drafting (CAD) services.
• L’école secondaire publique Omer-Deslauriers (Ottawa) – A minority French education school in Ottawa with more than 70 different countries represented in its student body, L’école secondaire publique Omer-Deslauriers is a culturally diverse school with little technology. With only one computer for every six students, Omer-Deslauriers will use their Future Generation Tech Lab to outfit a classroom with equipment to elevate classes in its Information, Technology and Communications program. The new technologies acquired from the donation will fulfill student needs, such as learning audio and video montages, animation and web design.

Quebec

• L’école secondaire Cavelier-De LaSalle (Montreal) – Known as a school with a less fortunate student population, L’école secondaire Cavelier-De LaSalle will use its Future Generation Tech Lab donation to boost morale and productivity. The donation will benefit three programs and 25 classes. Technology will be purchased to teach students how to develop communications skill-sets, such as creating newsletters and presentations, as well as provide research and developmental support for the general student body, including those with learning disabilities.

Photos of the current state of each classroom above will be available online for viewing beginning February 1, 2011. Reveals of the classroom upgrades and renovations will be shared in September.

Kobo Wireless eReader is now available at Best Buy Canada, both in-store and online. You can pick up the Onyx, Pearlized Lilac or Metallic Silver eReaders for $149.00 each from Best Buy, Chapters-Indigo or Walmart stores across Canada.

The 2011 Canada 3.0 conference has opened registration for this year’s event, which will take place in Stratford on May 2nd through 5th. The Early Bird rate of $495.00 + taxes and service charge will be available until midnight on March 3th, when ticket prices will go up to $695.00 + taxes and processing charge. There is a StartUp/Small Business/Non-Profit price available for $225.00 + taxes and service charge as well as ticketing options for students. If you register before February 18th you will automatically be entered for a draw to win a copy of MacroWikinomics, personally addressed and signed by author Anthony D. Williams. Please see the Canada 3.0 web site for this year’s confirmed speakers.

Monde Media and Bug Tracker have made two personnel announcements this morning – Jean-Robert Michel, Monde Media’s former General Manager has moved into the dual role of Production Director for both Bug-Tracker and Monde Media, while Monde Media’s former COO has become the new Client Relationship Director for both entities.

In other comings and goings, the BC Technology Industry Association announced today that its President, Pascal Spothelfer will leave the organization June 30^th to return to the corporate sector. Spothelfer was appointed President & CEO of the BC Technology Industry Association in November of 2007, and since that time has successfully raised the level of recognition of the organization and BC’s technology industry through his leadership, commitment to collaboration, and tireless advocacy efforts.

“My past three years at the BCTIA have allowed me to get to know our technology community on a very different level. It has been most rewarding both personally and professionally,” said Spothelfer. “I have met and worked with incredibly smart, engaged and inspiring people – experiences that will fuel my passion to assist in the further growth of BC’s technology industry not just until my departure from the BCTIA, but in whatever role I pursue in the future. “

Paul Gorton, Chair of the BCTIA commented, “We will greatly miss having Pascal’s passion and vision. On behalf of the Board, I thank Pascal for his commitment to the BCTIA, and we wish him the utmost success in the future.”

Pascal will continue to lead the BCTIA and work with the board on the leadership transition until his departure at the end of June. A formal search has been initiated by the BCTIA and will be facilitated by Odgers Berndtson. Please contact Caroline Jellinck at 604 602 2556 for more information.

Canadian developers seem to have a thing for hippos – here is some info from three Canadian enterprises which contain “hippo” in their names.

Rock Hippo Productions Ltd has launched the second closed beta for its cartoon-style third person action shooter, MicroVolts. This second phase of testing will continue for approximately two weeks in preparation for the official release day. In addition, the company has released all-new screen shots of the game and is holding a special “Free-for-All” tournament which will kick off Saturday, February 5th. Winning players will be awarded their choice of any weapon they want to use with the launch of the Open Beta. Players who visit the game’s website will be able to learn more about the game and the events as well as register for a beta key.

MicroVolts features fast paced, third person shooter action and pits players against each other in a secret battle that has been waged and going unnoticed right in our own backyard for years. No one knows for sure when or where the first toy declared war but rumor has it that the uprising began with four original limited edition figures, code named MicroVolts. Battle lines were drawn when Naomi, Knox, Pandora, and C.H.I.P.-the prototypes a-were soon joined by an endless number of modified versions. Now, toy figures around the world are engaged in an all-out war for valuable battery resources and supremacy of the Micro World. All we can do now is stay out of their way and wait for a champion to be declared!

With a ton of weapons, inventive character designs, and a huge list of customization features, MicroVolts is destined to invigorate and re-energize the Free2play space. Intuitive controls and a third person view make the game easy to play and fun for both newcomers and veterans of shooter games. Game modes include Free for All, Team Deathmatch, Item Match, Capture the Battery, and many more featuring various maps designed by toy concept.

Tiny Hippos, a start-up based in Waterloo, has a product which will be of interest to all of you mobile developers out there. According to its site, this product, which is named Ripple Emulator, is a multi-platform mobile environment emulator that runs in a web browser and is custom-tailored to HTML5 mobile application testing. Ripple aims to reduce the challenges being faced by mobile developers caused by today’s platform fragmentation in the marketplace.

Ripple is built as a Chrome extension, running as part of the Chrome browser and takes advantage of our back-end services to perform some of the more complex operations. It offers the ability to look under the hood of your mobile applications, gaining full visibility into what your it is doing. It also allows for the use of existing tools to perform JavaScript debugging, HTML DOM inspection, automated testing, as well as multiple device and screen resolution emulation in real-time without having to redeploy the mobile application or restart the emulator.

Meanwhile, just down the highway a bit from Tiny Hippos is Mercury Grove, an Ottawa-based developer who has an enterprise called Network Hippo, which according to Mercury Grove’s site connects to users’ email, address books, and social networks to consolidate all of their professional contacts, remind them to stay in touch with important people, and makes it easy to connect online or through email. Mercury Grove also offers a service called Web Collaboration, which is an online workspaces for internal teams, partners, and clients. Unlike other team sharing services, Web Collaboration can be setup in minutes and requires no download, installation or administration.

Another collaboration-style service I stumbled across is Vancouver-developed Jostle. I found this site because the person behind Jostle’s Twitter account retweeted one of my Game Design Expo live tweets. According to the Jostle web site, a People Engagement Platform™ that glues enterprises together. This platform enables innovative companies to clarify their organization, reveal hidden expertise and engage their employees. Jostle is enterprise software that is accessible from any web-enabled device and works like a website, without the need to install software.

Toronto’s Blue74 Labs has released a statement announcing that IIA, the studio’s critically acclaimed real-life massively multiplayer “outdoor” role-playing game sold tens of thousands of memberships in the first 48 hours of its release, making it the fastest-selling ARG game of all time. The IIA Spy Game is being compared to blockbuster hits “The Game”, “Spy Game”, and “Halting State”, a book by Charles Stross.

The IIA (International Intelligence Agency) is a real life multi-player game that gives players a real life, real feel, “off computer” role-playing game. Players don’t know about the actual game play until they are engaged in the game, which was made globally available on January 24th via a small posting on the popular “Ycombinator: Hacker News”, a web site for Internet start-ups. Expectations were less than 100 memberships to be sold the first day, Mike Curry noticed a very heavy load on his web server – realizing the game had gone viral. Registration for the game is $5.00, which interested players send via PayPal.

The company does have an official site for the game, however they are not releasing the information until its members exercise a critical classified mission. It’s believed that the mission entails a Remote Controlled UAV helicopter taking aerial photographs of the building that houses their website. It’s believed they are doing this to ensure the security of the building.

In an article released yesterday on Gamasutra, Nexon America VP of Business Development Won Il Sue spoke with reporter Chris Nutt about the million dollar Nexon iNitiative, during which the publisher asked for game dev submissions from studios around the world. Coming out at the top of heap with signed deals: One2Tribe from Poland, and Ontario studio Antic Entertainment. Nexon did not reveal exactly what type of game the London, ON Antic team is working on, other than to say one of the studios is working on a Facebook game and that both games, while somewhat of an unusual nature for Nexon, will be of the social media genre. In the meantime, check out Antic’s free to play Junk Battles, a browser-based free-to-play fast-paced vehicle combat game.

All’s fair in love and war in cartoon-land as TeleToon Retro couples pursue the love of fans and a spot in TeleToon Retro’s Hall of Fame as the Top 5 Sweethearts in honour of Valentine’s Day. Starting today and running until Sunday, February 6, viewers can vote online for their top 5 favourite cartoon love matches, for a place in TeleToon Retro history.

TeleToon Retro has narrowed the field to 18 classic animated admirers and is inviting fans to select which couples are the Top 5 Sweethearts of all-time. The list of nominees for the Top 5 Sweethearts is made up of the following cartoon couples:

Following the voting period, the Top 5 Sweethearts will be announced on Friday, February 11 and a special programming marathon featuring all five couples will air as part of the “Retro Rewind” programming block on Sunday, February 13 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET. These winners will be inducted into the TeleToon Retro Hall of Fame, joining the Top 5 favourite cartoon characters of all-time as chosen by the fans in December 2010.

OCRI’s annual Knowledge-based Industry Survey shows that as of December 31, 2010, the number of companies in Ottawa’s knowledge-based sectors has increased by 4.7 per cent while the number of employees has decreased by 4.4 per cent.

OCRI collects and verifies information provided by the companies to present the most complete picture of Ottawa’s technology industry across 12 unique industry sectors. The most current data indicates an increase of 4.7 per cent in the total number of companies to 1,944 up from 1,857 last year. The largest growth was seen in small companies with one to nine employees (up 11.4 per cent) and those with 100 to 499 employees (up 10.1 per cent). Overall, the number of employees has decreased from 78,067 to 74,611 or down 4.4 per cent. The most significant changes in employment can be seen in large companies with more than 500 employees (down 14.3 per cent).

“It is encouraging to see growth in the number of small companies. While 2010 was a successful year in many regards it wasn’t without significant challenges. Anchor companies in the knowledge-based sector look very different than they did a few short years ago,” says Claude Haw, President and CEO, OCRI. “As we begin 2011, it is critically important that we continue to focus on these key areas – developing and supporting Ottawa’s entrepreneurial culture, attracting investment, supporting the commercialization efforts of our emerging companies and aggressive promotion of Ottawa as a destination of choice for investors, entrepreneurs and multinationals.”

The biggest winner in the region is the Digital Media sector posting a 54 per cent increase in the number of companies and 50.9 per cent increase in the number of employees. Well accepted as a trend to watch in 2011, digital media, which includes mobile apps, gaming and animation, is likely to see even more activity in 2011.

For the fourth year in a row, the cleantech sector demonstrated growth. The number of companies has grown from 114 companies to 138, an increase of 21.1 per cent while the number of employees grew 22.1 per cent, up from 2,567 to 3,135. Please see the Study’s information page for more graphs.

According to the survey, IBM (including IBM Software Lab and IBM Canada) is the region’s largest knowledge-based industry employer with 4,000 employees followed closely by Bell Canada with 3,258 employees. The loss of Nortel, which posted 3,000 employees in last year’s survey, did factor into the overall loss even though Ciena, Avaya, Ericsson and GenBand did acquire most of this staff.

This initiative in Ontario is an example that should be implemented in every region of the country and around the world. Preserving our past before it disappears is an important part of remembering where we came from and how we got here. Of course, all of these digital files will be shared across what is rapidly becoming a very expensive internet. If our government fails to rein in the Canadian ISPs and the CRTC overlords, none of us will be able to afford to spend much time surfing around the museums learning about humanity and downloading files that allow us to hear the voices of our fore-bearers – never mind those of us who need to be able to download & upload large files in the course of what we do. Read the rest of this entry »

Virginia research company comScore, Inc. has released findings from comScore ARS indicating the importance of a strong upfront strategy and creative execution in driving campaign effectiveness for TV and digital advertising campaigns in Canada. Extensive research conducted by comScore ARS also shows that creative quality drives more than half of the sales changes for brands analyzed, four times higher than the impact of the specific media plan involved, highlighting the importance of optimizing creative in ad campaigns.

* Numbers represent the percent change in market share shifts explained by the corresponding factors.
**Ad Quality represents the quality of creative based on the ARS Consumer Choice Score, which measures changes in consumer preference through a simulated purchase exercise with and without exposure to the creative.
***Media Plan includes variables such as GRPs, wearout and continuity/flighting of airing.

“In the digital media industry in Canada, we tend to spend a great deal of effort on optimizing the media plan – and rightfully so, because it is extremely important,” said Brent Bernie, president of comScore Canada. “When one considers, however, the fact that the quality of the creative used in the ad can have such a significant impact on sales outcomes, we can begin to see why it is also essential to optimize creative strategy and messaging on the front end of the planning process. While front-end testing may not be second nature to digital advertisers just yet, we ignore its importance at our own peril.”

Additional comScore ARS research demonstrates the importance of getting the creative strategy (i.e. value proposition, sales message, etc.) right at the outset of a campaign. For a series of 26 campaigns conducted in Canada, comScore ARS scored the campaign’s creative strategy, using the ARS Consumer Choice Score (See definition of ARS Consumer Choice Score at bottom). The research categorized the results for each campaign into below-average, average and above-average relative to the comScore ARS Fair Share Benchmark, which provides the expected score for an average campaign taking into account marketplace factors associated with the advertised brand and category. (See definition of comScore ARS Fair Share Benchmark at bottom.) The actual creative execution was then scored, using the ARS Consumer Choice Score, again categorizing each campaign into below-average, average and above-average relative rankings.

The relationship between the creative strategy’s score and the resulting execution’s score helps to shed light on the value of a strong, upfront creative strategy. Study findings showed that of the six campaigns with an above-average creative strategy, five resulted in an above-average execution (83 percent). Similarly, among the three campaigns with a below-average creative strategy, each of them resulted in a below average execution. Additionally, none of the campaigns with a below-average creative strategy score performed above-average on creative execution.

“While it is easy to overlook, getting the creative strategy correct at the outset of a campaign is fundamental to creating campaigns that actually work,” added Mr. Bernie. “There are several phases to a campaign that must go right, while getting any one of those phases wrong significantly increases the likelihood that the campaign will not perform well in market.”

D-Box Technologies has announced its second deal in two days with the Larry H. Miller Megaplex Theatres set to feature D-BOX motion-enhanced seats at its Ogden, Utah location. The Megaplex 13 at the Junction will boast 30 D-BOX MFX Seats that move in perfect sync with the onscreen movie action. Each seat creates subtle, refined motion effects that pitch, roll and heave resulting in an incredibly immersive movie-watching experience.

“Larry Miller Megaplex Theatres are often among the top-grossing movie theatres in the United States,” said President and Chief Executive Officer of D-BOX Technologies, Claude Mc Master. “The success of D-BOX at the South Jordan location has been tremendous and we are honored to partner again, further increasing our depth in the western U.S.”

“D-BOX continues to prove its worth and exceed our expectations at our Megaplex 20 in South Jordan with moviegoers wildly excited about their experience,” said Blake Andersen, Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Megaplex Theatres. “It makes sense for us to build on the momentum and introduce it at another theatre. We’ve always been held in the highest regard when it comes to theatre technologies and incorporating D-BOX at additional theatres is a natural progression.”

There is a ton of news coming out of the Canadian Creatisphere today. Grab a coffee and let’s take a look at what’s going on so far. Congratulations to the team over at Capcom Studios Vancouver whose Dead Rising 2: Case Zero game was the top selling title last year on XBLA with 689 000 units downloaded to Xboxes around the world. Congratulations also to the Assassin’s Creed team over at Ubisoft Montreal for being named as the Guinness world record holder with Assassin’s Creed II being featured on 127 international publications between April 2009 and April 2010.

A free version of The Balls! Extreme Sports Ball Busting has been released by Savant Inc. The Balls game is compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad; the paid version is listed at 99 cents USD. The free version offers OpenFeint and the same great graphics, audio, and frantic gameplay as the paid version, with a teaser for another mode coming in the future.

Riese: The Battle for Eleysia by Genius Factor Games has had an update to its features, along with a bug fix. Add features include the addition of Head-to-Head Multiplayer (via local wifi), stability improvements and aforementioned bug fixes, along with updates to the battle screens, How To Play help and screen-flow for editing decks. Riese: The Battle for Eleysia sells in the iTunes App Store for $2.99 USD.

Drift Mania Championship is now available worldwide on the Mac AppStore for $2.99. This new high-resolution version includes all the in-app purchase items that are available as options in the iOS version. As with all previous platform versions, the Mac AppStore version is loaded with new features like real drifting, as well as the ability to compete with users who are on other iOS or Android devices. Experience longer burnouts, taking 11 different vehicles through 3 levels of difficulty on 8 tracks as you compete to take over the global leaderboards.

ACM SIGGRAPH Vancouver has just announced its latest event, which will be held on February 8th in the Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema at the SFU Woodward’s campus on West Hastings. Tron – Cult Favourite to Franchise will feature two presentations that will take a look at this convergence of  Vancouver film and game development teams. The first presentation will cover the visual effects used in the making of TRON and TRON: Legacy. This session will be presented by TRON animator and programmer Frank Vitz and Darren Poe, Digital Supervisor at Digital Domain Vancouver.  In the second presentation, former Propaganda Games Technical Art Director Gary Snyder and Art Director David Patch will share their experiences working with the TRON: Legacy film team to recreate the TRON assets and storyline in the video game TRON: Evolution. Tickets for this event are $25.00 for non-SIGGRAPH members or $15.00 for members and include a pre-event social mixer.

Hothead Games has released part two of the Ask Dr. Mike video series with Dr. Mike Hayward. Watch this intense and dramatic documentary which studies the habits of Swarmites as they weave their way through diabolical and unrelenting gauntlets of death and destruction, attempting to be the last pudgy blue moron still standing. It is highly recommended that those who are planning to take over their own Swarm colonies study the video series closely, so that you will be prepared for any situation into which your Swarmites will undoubtedly  place themselves. If you have the opportunity to practice herding cats, I suggest you take advantage of the experience.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ySRKr8omkY]

As part of the PlayStation®Network “11 for 11” sale, players can grab Big Sandwich’s thrilling dragon-themed game HOARD™ for half-price until January 31st. With game play for 1 to 4 players, HOARD™ combines action and strategy elements to create an innovative gameplay mix unlike anything else on the store. The game features over 35 levels, 4 game modes, 100+ badges to earn, trophy support, leaderboards, and any combination of couch and online players. Best of all, HOARD™ puts the dragon in the hero’s role, where he must strive against cruel knights, fierce wizards, conniving burglars, and even rampaging giants.

Critics and consumers alike have appreciated HOARD’s unique design. IGN recently honored HOARD™ with the “Best Quick Fix” Best of 2010 award, and the game was also nominated in the “Best Competitive Multiplayer” category. Joystiq says “HOARD’s gameplay shines,” and 1UP reports “the game hides a surprising layer of complexity and strategy.”

“If you’ve been keeping an eye on HOARD™ but have been waiting for the right time to try it, now’s officially that time,” says Glenn Barnes, Big Sandwich’s Creative Director. “For less than 8 bucks you get a proven, acclaimed game with over 20 hours of gameplay. It’s a no-brainer.”

Don’t forget to get your nominations in for The Technology Impact Awards. The BCTIA will be accepting submissions for BC’s top technology innovations, companies and individuals from all sectors until March 11th. The TIAs will be held on the evening of June 9th at the Vancouver Convention Centre. The Award categories are as follows:

Technology Awards: Most Promising Pre-Commercial Technology, Excellence in Product Innovation and Best Application of Technology

Company Awards: Most Promising Start-up, Emerging Company of the Year and Company of the Year

Personal Recognition Awards: Team of the Year, Community Engagement and Person of the Year

The Canadian Marketing Association invites you to attend the 2nd Annual CMA Awards Case Study event, where attendees will join Master of Ceremonies Aldo Cundari in a close-up look at some of today’s top creative works and better understand how they came to be CMA Award winners. The Case Study event will be held in the Victoria Room at  Toronto’s Metropolitan Hotel on February 2nd from 3:30 – 5:30pm, with a networking social immediately following the session. All-inclusive tickets are $75.00 each for CMA members or $95.00 earch for non-members. Tickets for the cocktail party only are $25.00 each for CMA members or $30.00 each for non-members.

Merging+Media has announced that there will be a Spring session featuring Anita Ondine-Smith, who will present an exclusive Transmedia Seminar + Lab on April 28th and 29th at the VanCity Theatre in Vancouver. The focus of this session will be a 1/2 day Seminar with a 1 ½ day hands-on in-depth lab on the full cycle of Transmedia development, writing, production and distribution from Conception to Consumption. Event participants will obtain a framework for production as well as Creative Toolkit and Business Strategies for Transmedia production. This Transmedia theory, Case studies and architectural workshop is designed to provide tools to create successful transmedia productions. The seminar portion of the event will be open to 100-150 people, while 20-24 producers, writers, broadcasters, commissioning editors will be selected to take part in the workshop.

Merging+Media has also confirmed that the next full conference and master class will be returning in October. Like the first conference held last fall, this event will feature world class speakers and experts who will present “Best in Class” case studies and high calibre discussions on the business of cross-media production. The two day programme will include a Masterclass + Conference, International B2B Matchmaking, Networking receptions, M+M Socializer + Digital Gallery to showcase our latest local technology. The Merging+Media 2011 Masterclass will include the Merging+Media Pitch and Development Prize. Keep an eye on the Merging+Media site for confirmed dates and speakers.

The Canadian Telecom Summit has early bird pricing available until February 28th, which means you can save $200.00 off the regular registration price. The 10th annual Canadian Telecom Summit will be taking place in Toronto on May 31st through June 2nd and offers three days of discussion regarding the key issues and trends surrounding the Canadian Telecom industry.

Group buying site SwarmJam, which launched across all Postmedia Network properties in December has expanded to the Winnipeg area through a partnership with the Winnipeg Free Press. The promotion-based system uses a platform through which consumers are connected with local businesses. SwarmJam’s group buying service offers savings of 50% or better, which for some deals can actually grow progressively better as more people sign onl For “progressive deals”, when the offer closes, the number of cumulative purchases determines the actual discount. So, these deals become better as subscribers share the promotion with friends, family and people in their social network. Users of the service simply sign up for a free subscription to get the SwarmJam Winnipeg Daily Deal emailed directly to their inbox. They can then click on deals they like, pay online, print the certificate and visit the business to redeem it. There are currently thirteen major urban and suburban areas which offer SwarmJam deals.

Wicked Interactive, publisher of Mission Against Terror, has launched Occupation Mode with a twist. Alongside the hotly anticipated new game mode which brings hardcore, capture-the-flag-style gameplay comes the chance to win the most unique and priceless weapon so far seen in the popular, free-to-play shooter – the Golden AK-47.

“We have been saving this announcement for just the right moment,” said Sam Ho, Director, Wicked Interactive. “With the frenzy of excitement over Occupation Mode, it seemed like the perfect time to blow everyone’s minds with this news. The Golden AK-47 is the ultimate showpiece for the M.A.T. community.”

The Lottery System enables players to take a break from a raw competition of Occupation Mode. Just like any other lottery, players step up, lay down their ticket and spin an actual wheel that appears right in the middle of the screen. The Golden AK-47 is merely the ultimate prize; there are plenty more for those who are feeling lucky.

“There are a whole assortment of weapons that the Lottery System offers,” added Ho. “Many, like the Golden AK-47, are one-of-a-kind items that cannot be purchased. We hope the M.A.T. Community enjoys the new System. It’s our way of helping them forget the winter doldrums.

Congratulations to the team behind Moderation Town. The web series, along with the show’s producers Stitch Media picked up the nextMEDIA Digital Launch Pad Award at this year’s NATPE conference which just wrapped in Miami.

One of my favourite new shows on HGTV Canada, Design DNA, which is produced by  Toronto’s Castlewood Productions has been picked up by Australia’s Beyond Distribution for international television distribution. If you haven’t yet seen the show, here is it’s official synopsis: Design DNA combines the simplicity of “How It’s Made”, the popular manufacturing show, with high style design. This show focuses on the amazing stories of the world’s most extraordinary and ordinary pieces of home design. From the first spark of conception throughout the trial and error of design, to the factory floor, and finally to a stunning reveal in a magnificent home, each episode features the life story of three iconic and sometimes not so iconic pieces of home design. Who knew that one of the garbage cans in our house was inspired by classic art design – certainly not us when we bought it – but we do now. 😉

The Quebec Technology Association (AQT) has launched a broad survey of CEOs and executives of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies across Quebec. Christened “AQT Barometer”, this survey will provide a picture of business practices and key issues, while also highlighting the growth requirements of this sector which is of strategic importance to the Quebec economy. Data collection will continue through the following weeks and the results will be unveiled in May 2011.

“The ICT industry is a powerful lever for the entire economy, explained Nicole Martel, Chief Executive Officer of AQT. The AQT Barometer will enhance our understanding of the sector’s evolution, making it possible to develop strategies to effectively support the growth of some 2000 Quebec ICT companies. In addition, the study will allow the AQT to better tailor its programs and tools to the needs of its members.”

The AQT Barometer will provide a detailed profile of ICT companies operating in Quebec and identify indicators to form a basis for comparison to track the sector’s progression. These indicators will also serve to develop the AQT Index which will be used to measure the annual growth of the ICT sector based on data relating to human resources, innovation, income, and ICT exports. The survey will be conducted by the SOM survey firm. Participants in this survey will get a customized report comparing their own business to similar ones in Quebec. ICT companies willing to take part in the survey may obtain their password to the online survey by communicating with AQT.

Go Explore Canada is a multimedia app available as a free download from both the Apple App Store and Android Market. The app resulted from a joint effort of brothers Jon and Mark Pedersen who have years of Canadian film and television production experience, including the Canadian Antiques Roadshow, documentaries for CBC, CTV and IFC and Jon’s feature film Tuesday, Wednesday.

Go Explore Canada covers travel anywhere in Canada (including the high Arctic) with extensive listings in all ten provinces and three territories, many with multimedia, and the producers – Go Explore Everywhere Inc – have loaded it with the top natural wonders and travel attractions of Canada. They also sell listings to the top restaurants, hotels and clubs, and it already has 5,000 locations with more being added every day.

Users of Appolicious say Go Explore Canada is one of the top 10 Canadian apps: “So you’ve arrived in Canada. What next? This app has tours based on your province, city, and what kinds of tourism you’re into. I definitely can vouch that the Toronto tour hits all the major amusing activities/sites in the city and surrounding areas.”

The producers of Go Explore Canada have streamlined the latest version with new Category searches that allow users to easily zero in on what they want to find anywhere in the country. One of the challenges was to build an app this big while making sure it doesn’t crash. Working closely with their software developers, the producers have come up with an app that occupies little space on the phone but still runs fast.

“We wanted to make an app that’s the one to have if you’re travelling in Canada,” says Mark Pedersen, one of the two Maritime brothers who have expanded their media production company to include multimedia apps.

The more than 5,000 Points of Interest are searchable by province, territory and city with sections for nature and adventure, history, fun things to do, eating, sleeping, night life, transportation, essential services and more. Each POI has a pin on the map, address, phone number, description and direct link to its web site that can be surfed without losing your place on the app tour. The sites can also buy embedded multimedia that plays instantly off their listing.

Go Explore Canada has been so successful that the producers have also begun selling branded map-based apps to other clients in three different sizes. All their apps come with patented Tour Builder software developed by their U.S. partner, Bar Z Adventures. The software allows app clients to change the content as often as they like simply by logging on to the dedicated server with their password.

Creativeworks Productions is pleased to announce that their video In Your Own Words was a gold award winner in this year’s prestigious Pixie Awards competition, which honours outstanding creativity in motion graphics, FX and animation. The In Your Own Words video was created for Seneca College, where for almost 45 years, Seneca’s commitment to quality post-secondary education has provided the foundation for students to become successful career-ready graduates in business, industry and the communities in which they live. The video was created to launch a multimedia campaign for Seneca College students aimed at obtaining their opinions in a fun and engaging format while also giving them an opportunity to hear and see their new President.

“Seneca’s In Your Own Words campaign gave students an opportunity to tell us in their own words the type of Seneca they want”, said Seneca’s President, David Agnew. “The need for student involvement in designing Seneca’s future community is a critical component. By using new media such as the green screen video and special effects, In Your Own Words achieved excellent results. We’re thrilled with the recognition received by the video produced by Creativeworks Productions. It played an important role in the success of this project.”

Creativeworks Productions’ President Doug Hohener says, “This video was part of an exciting multimedia student engagement program for the College. The challenge we were given was to target college students with an “out of the box” solution that was fresh, innovative, fast-paced and engaging, while communicating the College’s key messages. The result seems to have hit the mark!”

The Pixie Awards are sponsored by The American Pixel Academy, whose goal is to connect creative visual professionals in the pixel media with educators and judged by top industry professionals, all of whom have won significant awards for their work.

The Female Eye Film Festival (FeFF) launches its 9th annual showcase and celebration of films directed by women with a bang! This March 16 to 20, 2011, join us as we take a look through the lens at sex, violence and politics through the Female Eye. This years’ line up, slated to be unveiled at the Female Eye Media Sizzler which will be held at Toronto’s Gladstone Hotel on February 24th, will prove to be both a mainstream and unusual mix of salacious, revelatory and provocative cinema.

The Female Eye Film Festival is recognized around the world as an opportunity for both established and first-time filmmakers to experience an international independent film festival, meet and interact with internationally recognized directors and showcase their work. “There are very few festivals that give you the opportunity to spend quality time with your fellow filmmakers and to make what we’re sure will be long-lasting personal and professional relationships,” reflected Richard Wilson, L.A. Producer of FEFF 2010’s closing night gala film Nothing Special.

Attendees of the festival will enjoy five full days of extraordinary films along with Script Readings, Industry Panel Discussions, the Directors Round Table, The 3rd Women In The Directors Chair Career Advancement Module, Best in The Biz Series and the Honorary Director Brunch and Tribute. An Opening Night Gala will kick off the festival followed by exciting parties each night leading to the closing night awards reception and gala. All screenings will take place at the Rainbow Cinemas Market Square, 80 Front Street East, while the FEFF hotel partner, the Novotel Toronto Centre, 45 The Esplanade will host all panel discussions, workshops and award ceremonies. Party & other venues TBA.

Trellia Networks a Montreal-based provider of enterprise mobility management solutions, today announced the “Enabling iPhone and iPad for the Enterprise” webinar on Thursday February 3, 2011. This session is designed for organizations looking to overcome the cost and security challenges associated with embracing iOS devices for business use.

The consumerization of mobile devices in the enterprise is an unstoppable trend, with iPhones and iPads leading the way. Chances are that in almost every enterprise a handful of mobile users are already asking IT to support them. On the other hand, some enterprises recognize that these devices represent a powerful new set of tools: from new presentation options to custom applications, iOS devices present the enterprise with an opportunity to take their mobile business to a whole new level. If your organization is considering support for iOS devices, whether corporate or personal, this webinar is for you.

Best Buy Mobile, the mobile specialty retail unit of Best Buy Canada, announces the launch of Free Phone Fridays at all stores across Canada. Beginning February 4 and running every Friday in February, Best Buy Mobile will feature two to three free mobile phones in all Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile specialty stores across Canada.

Each week will feature at least one high-end, in-demand smart phone for free with a new, in-store three-year activation. Reward Zone members will receive 2,500 points for every new, in-store activation or renewal (based on new in-store three-year activations. Minimum voice and data plan required. See in-store and online for details). The free phones will be announced every Thursday to the company’s Facebook fans and Twitter followers.

Best Buy Mobile has become a leading destination for smart phones and accessories, in part because of the promises the store offers its customers: better choice of phones and networks; impartial, informed advice; straightforward pricing; and someone to be there for the life of the phone. In addition, Best Buy Mobile offers an array of services aimed at improving the mobile phone buying experience, including:

* Upgrade Checker: A quick and easy service that gives customers the ability to see when they are eligible for their next phone upgrade. Best Buy Mobile Specialists can review customers’ current plan to determine which upgrade options they are eligible for and can help customers change plans or providers if they are unhappy with their current carrier plan.

* Walk Out Working™: Free in-store smart phone setup by a Best Buy Mobile Specialist who will sync personal email accounts, set up Bluetooth headsets, transfer contacts and activate other services to allow the customer to leave the store with a fully functional new smart phone.

The Walrus Foundation and Aeroplan have launched The Walrus Foundation Amateur Travel Photography Contest. Sponsored by Aeroplan, this nationwide contest will be judged by acclaimed photographer Edward Burtynsky, The Walrus magazine’s art director Brian Morgan, and the Canadian public. The contest is open to Canadian residents, and the winning photo will be published in The Walrus magazine. The winning amateur photographer will also receive 100,000 Aeroplan Miles courtesy of Aeroplan, and an invitation for two to The Walrus Foundation Gala in January 2012. In addition, a full gallery of photographs from the runners-up will be showcased on the contest page.

“This is a great opportunity for photography fans and travelers alike to get out and snap photos of their favourite destinations, unique landscapes and off the beaten path locations or even be creative in their own city,” said David Klein, Vice President, Marketing, Aeroplan. “For the last few years, through our partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario, we’ve been trying to raise the profile of photography with the Grange Prize. Aeroplan is thrilled to be a part of this contest and to be working with The Walrus Foundation to encourage participation in this important art form.”

For those unfamiliar with The Walrus Foundation, it is a charitable non-profit organization with a mandate to promote public discourse on matters vital to our country. The Foundation is dedicated to supporting Canadian writers, artists, readers, education, ideas, and debate. First and foremost, we achieve these goals by publishing The Walrus magazine ten times a year. We also produce public debates, leadership events, and run an intensive internship program training the next generation of leaders of media and the arts.

“The Walrus Foundation is a keen supporter of Canadian artists, both established and emerging,” said The Walrus Foundation’s executive director and co-publisher Shelley Ambrose. “We’re delighted to be working with Aeroplan and Edward Burtynsky to showcase Canadian photographers and their unique perspectives on our world.”

The Walrus Travel Photography contest begins today with the release of the March issue of The Walrus, and officially closes on May 31, 2011. Judges will select a shortlist of ten photos Between May 31 and July 1, 2011. Throughout the summer of 2011, readers of The Walrus magazine and visitors to the contest page will be asked to vote for their favourite photo. The winning photo will be selected on August 27, 2011, and will be featured along with a short essay in the special double winter January/February issue of The Walrus.

January 19, 2011 – The Walrus Foundation Amateur Travel Photography Contest sponsored by Aeroplan opens
May 31, 2011 – The last day for entrants to submit their travel photos to The Walrus Foundation
July 1, 2011 – Judges Edward Burtynsky and Brian Morgan release shortlist of ten photos, and public voting opens
August 26, 2011 – Public voting ends, and the winning photo is selected
December 5, 2011 – The winning photo will be published in The Walrus magazine
January 18, 2012 – The winning amateur photographer and a guest will attend The 4th Annual Walrus Foundation Gala

As public favour of the CRTC begins heading for an all-time low with growing complaints about its lack of action in regards to Canadian ISPs, the Commission has reaffirmed its support for the Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS), an agency that works to resolve disagreements between Canadians and their service providers.

“Following an extensive review, we are satisfied that the CCTS is doing a good job of resolving complaints on behalf of consumers and small businesses,” said Leonard Katz, the CRTC’s Vice-Chairman of Telecommunications. “An independent agency like the CCTS is an essential intermediary in a market where competition is growing by the day and the majority of telecommunications services are no longer regulated.”

As part of its review, the Commission found that the CCTS’ governance structure and mandate remain appropriate, and extended the membership requirement for a period of five years. Moreover, to ensure that a greater number of Canadians are able to benefit from the agency’s complaint-resolution services, all telecommunications service providers must become members of the CCTS. The Commission had previously only required companies with annual revenues over $10 million to join the agency.

The Commission has also asked the agency to include more details in its annual report regarding the types of complaints it receives. This information will enable a better assessment of trends, the agency’s complaint-resolution activities and the effectiveness of public awareness activities.

Consumers and small businesses must first attempt to resolve any disagreements related to an unregulated telecommunications service directly with their service provider. If the matter remains unresolved, they may file a complaint with the CCTS.

A group of leading Ontario digital media companies and venture capital investors will head to New York City next week as part of a delegation organized by MaRS Discovery District. As part of the visit, delegate companies will present at the prestigious OnMedia NYC 2011 conference. OnMedia NYC 2011 is a two-and-a-half day executive gathering held on Jan. 31 – Feb. 2, 2011. The conference features some of the most innovative companies, eminent technologists, influential investors and respected tech journalists in the digital media market. The conference is hosted by Tony Perkins, founder and editor of AlwaysOn, and features keynotes from media personalities such as Mark Cuban, billionaire investor and Internet entrepreneur.

Prior to the OnMedia sessions, MaRS will host an investor luncheon on Jan. 31 featuring CEO presentations from the MaRS delegation. Several Canadian investors will attend from firms such as Blackberry Partners Fund, GrowthWorks, iNovia Capital, MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, Real Ventures, Rho Ventures, Rogers Ventures and Verdexus. Notable investors from the NYC area will also be in attendance. Following the luncheon, the delegation will visit prominent digital media startups in the Union Square area.

“We are bringing a group of companies focused on digital media innovations that add considerable value for customers in key areas such as marketing, branding, advertising, research and public relations,” said MaRS CEO Ilse Treurnicht. “New York City is a key market where innovators, influencers and investors are shaping the digital media sector on a global scale. With our mission focused on building Ontario’s next generation of innovative companies, MaRS is committed to facilitating targeted investor introductions and business development for high-potential clients in these select markets.”

The companies in the MaRS delegation are bringing innovative technologies and business models to market that focus on everything from optimizing organic search; hyper-local advertising for user generated news; next generation live event sports gaming; advertising supported small business accounting software; and social engagement ranking platforms to measure media influence.

The Ontario companies attending are:

* gShift Labs – search engine optimization
* InGamer Sports – live event social gaming
* OpenFile – user-generated online newspaper
* PostRank – social engagement and influence ratings
* Viafoura – online user engagement
* Wave Accounting – free accounting application for small businesses

Speaking of business assistance, if you are a BC company you need to check out The BCIT Commercialization Assistance Program (CAP), a fund which provides financial assistance to BC SME’s and entrepreneurs. The fund looks to stimulate innovation by increasing access to business and technology expertise.

The Fund can assist your business with the following:

* Acquire business and professional services required to facilitate the commercialization process (IP, development of business plans and market or technology studies)
* Access to technical assistance and facilities (Product design, prototyping, testing, verification, certification and demonstration)

The Fund offers the following amounts:

* Up to $10,000 assistance for business and professional consulting services
* Up to $50,000 assistance for technical assistance and facilities

The deadline to apply is November 20, 2011. Please see The Fund’s information page for complete information.

D-Box Technologies is continuing its trend to take over the US one theatre at a time, announcing today that the company has signed a third agreement with Premiere Cinemas to equip its Orlando, Florida location with 22 D-BOX MFX Seats.

“During the last few months of 2010, we advanced our market share in the eastern U.S. with new theatre partners and are now continuing along that path with the expansion of our cooperation with Premiere Cinemas and adding the Orlando location,” said President and Chief Executive Officer of D-BOX Technologies, Claude McMaster.

“This will be our third theatre with D-BOX,” said Gary Moore, President of Premiere Cinemas. “Known for providing a state-of-the-art entertainment experience, moviegoers who frequent our Texas theatres have provided an overwhelmingly positive response to D-BOX and we anticipate similar results once the innovative motion technology is unveiled in Orlando this February.”

Mobilicity and Facebook today announced that Mobilicity is offering their customers another way to stay connected with a new Facebook mobile application for Java-powered feature phones. Mobilicity is also sponsoring the launch by enabling customers to download and use the application for at least three months from the time of the launch. The length of the offer is at the discretion of the mobile operator.

This new Facebook application provides a better experience for feature phones than other similar applications and mobile sites. It brings the popular features and user experience already deployed on Facebook mobile applications for smartphones to the world’s most popular feature phones, and is optimized for speed and performance on Mobilicity’s network. It includes several new and unique features that enable people to stay connected through Facebook including:

* Viewing photos from your mobile phone
* Synchronizing your local address book contacts with your Facebook friends
* Facebook login to third party services within the application, such as news, sports, games, and weather

The new Facebook application is optimized to use as little data as possible while providing the great user experience mobile applications offer. The application uses less data than other similar applications or mobile sites, enabling it to be much cheaper for people to use when the trial period ends. The new Facebook application is a collaboration between Facebook and Snaptu, whose platform brings leading web services to millions of people around the world on more than 2,500 different types of mobile devices via the Snaptu app.

On February 25th, the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) will present the findings from a national consultation on how the Internet is run at the Canadian Internet Forum (CIF). CIRA, along with its partners the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and the Media Awareness Network (MNet), will present findings from six face-to-face consultations that took place across Canada along with input received from an online discussion forum.

A panel of Canadian experts will discuss the findings, and leading Canadian technology visionary Leonard Brody will provide the keynote address. The event will also feature sessions for participants to provide their feedback and ideas about Internet governance in Canada and internationally. The CIF will be webcast to facilitate the interactive participation of all Canadians who are interested in Canada’s role in Internet governance.

Although the Internet has become an integral part of the Canadian economy and society, the CIF presents the first opportunity for Canadians to discuss how it is developed, deployed and governed. The results of the consultations, online discussion and the national event will be presented to the United Nations coordinated Internet Governance Forum, a venue for nations to discuss the future of the Internet.

As of today, the online discussion forum is open to all interested Canadians who wish to discuss issues related to how the Internet is developed, deployed and governed in Canada and around the world. All interested Canadians are invited to join in on the discussion. Registration for the Canadian Internet Forum is free, and the event will also be webcast in English and French. The Forum will take place at the Brookstreet Hotel in Ottawa from 9:00am until 5:00pm on February 25th.

OpenText will be bringing content analytics capabilities to market for improved business productivity through an Intellectual Property (IP) licensing agreement with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). The NRC innovations will be incorporated into OpenText’s flagship Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Suite, with the first version expected to be available by Spring 2011.

Businesses and governments are increasingly engaging with workers, partners and customers across a range of electronic and social media to collaborate, find new ideas, measure sentiment, identify important trends and predict future outcomes based on content analytics. With added content analytics capabilities incorporated into the OpenText ECM Suite, businesses will gain more value from their content through improved data mining and analysis.

Research and development for the new project is already under way in the Ottawa NRC facilities in collaboration with OpenText’s Montreal R&D center that develops its content analytics solutions, based on the acquisition of Nstein Technologies last year. The project is focused on developing software for analyzing large collections of structured and unstructured data that reside within organizations.

Content Analytics addresses the discovery of answers to those important business questions through the use of semantic technologies such as natural language processing and sentiment analysis. The collaboration between the National Research Council of Canada and OpenText will enable more efficient data mining capability to locate entities –names, product brands, geographic locations, currencies, ticker symbols for example – plus uncover facts such as financial statements, merger and acquisition announcements, etc. and then connect relationships between those entities and facts. The software can search for pieces of text or metadata that cannot be specified in common search engines, and the results from those queries can be presented much more flexibly than would be possible using traditional business intelligence solutions.

Boutique advisory and technology services company Project X Ltd. has completed the QuickStrike Mobile Application training program from MicroStrategy, a global leader in business intelligence technology. Project X is among the first MicroStrategy alliance partners to complete the training program and become lead facilitators for the MicroStrategy Mobile QuickStrike Program in Canada.

As MicroStrategy Mobile QuickStrike Lead Facilitators, Project X will work with clients to accelerate their mobile BI application strategies from concept to production with a proof of concept mobile application, storyboard and video overview in two weeks. With mobile business intelligence on the verge of widespread adoption, companies are looking to deploy their business data on devices that make it easy and convenient to access critical data.

PoolingPeople.ca, a new web-based business, provides employers with a unique platform for cost-effectively sharing employees directly with each other. The first online service of its kind, PoolingPeople.ca allows companies to reduce overhead costs during idle time by temporarily or permanently sharing employees with other member companies. Conversely, PoolingPeople.ca allows employers to find experienced people when they need additional part-time or full-time staff.

With more than 15 years experience in the recruitment industry, McKinnon knows first-hand the problems and costs businesses face trying to fill a vacancy with a qualified candidate.  Equally, she understands the difficulties involved when layoffs occur.

For a $250 US annual subscription fee, employers can use PoolingPeople.ca in various ways:

• If a company is suddenly overstaffed because of a project delay, they can use PoolingPeople.ca to connect with another company experiencing a temporary worker shortage due to vacation schedules, for example. The two companies solve their staffing issues by lending or borrowing well-qualified employees on a short-term basis.
• A business that must downsize can find other member companies looking to permanently hire talented staff.
• If a company needs to reduce a full-time employee to part-time, it can enter the individual’s qualifications on PoolingPeople.ca and connect with another company needing a part-time employee – resulting in the employee working for both firms.

Level Platforms Inc. has launched Managed Workplace® 2011, a comprehensive, integrated remote monitoring, management and automation software platform designed for IT service providers offering managed services. This historic major release features comprehensive Automation OnDemand, an optional Device Manager agent to supplement Level Platforms award-winning agentless architecture, and further advances in the platform’s seamless integration with the full IT ecosystem found in most organizations today, including local infrastructure, applications and Cloud services. Managed Workplace 2011 is available in Cloud and On Premise versions.

In conjunction with the release of Managed Workplace 2011, Level Platforms also announced the Managed Workplace 2011 Road Show to take place in 19 cities across North America this February 8th through 24th. In addition to an introduction to the highly anticipated Managed Workplace 2011, attendees will benefit from new industry research and information, open forums led by successful MSPs sharing their insights and experience, and significant exclusive industry announcements from leading vendors working with Level Platforms to help the managed services community enhance the growth and profitability of their businesses in 2011.

The Nature Conservancy, Protecting Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest has become the first Canadian incentive to ever receive funding from Disney Friends for Change. The Nature Conservancy: Protecting Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest took second place in the recent round of voting by kids on the Disney Friends for Change website. Disney Friends for Change is a multiplatform environmental initiative that helps kids help the planet. Protecting Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest is a project trains local students to monitor local wildlife in an effort to protect the rainforest, home to such animals as grizzly bears and wolves.

The voting is part of an overall call to action for kids to make a difference in their local communities. Registered participants make personal promises to reduce their impact on the environment by changing their everyday actions. They can also help allocate Disney’s $1 million commitment to fund environmental programs worldwide. This round of voting is the first to include kids from around the world since Disney Friends for Change expanded into Latin America and Europe.

Voting is continuous throughout the year, giving kids the opportunity to vote on five different projects per quarter. Each project is managed by leading environmental nonprofit organizations. The projects are centered on Disney Friends for Change’s four focus areas — climate, habitat, waste and water. With nearly 2.5 million votes, Disney Friends for Change kids have helped direct almost $2 million to 41 projects in 21 countries since the program was launched in May 2009.

The award amount is contingent upon how many votes each project receives. This is the third round of award voting, and the first to include international votes. BirdLife International, Saving Spoony’s Chinese Wetlands received the first prize allotment of $100 000.00 The project contributes to the conservation of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, a unique and highly threatened migratory shorebird. The project raises awareness among local governments and communities about the importance of the species and of the inter-tidal wetlands that are vital for its survival.

Destiny Media Technologies Inc. has received conditional approval from the TSX Venture Exchange for its Employee Stock Purchase Plan. Under the Plan, employees of Destiny are able to contribute up to 5% of their annual salary into a pool which is matched equally by Destiny. Independent directors are able to contribute a maximum of $12,500 each for a combined maximum annual purchase of $25,000. The maximum annual combined contributions will be $400,000. Money in the pool will be used to purchase shares out of the market on a biweekly basis. All purchases will be made through the Exchange by a third party plan agent and no purchases will be made on the OTC or German exchanges. The third party plan agent will also be responsible for the administration of the Plan on behalf of Destiny and the participants. The Plan is subject to shareholder approval at Destiny’s next AGM.

This past weekend we attended the 2011 Game Design Expo hosted by our friends at the Vancouver Film School Game Design Programme. As with previous years the sessions were informative and entertaining, leaving us with many areas for further research and ideas on how to apply these new ideas to what we are trying to accomplish. For a more in-depth look at the sessions as they happened, search the #gdexpo hashtag on Twitter for my live-tweets as well as those from VFS staff.

My favourite session of the day was that of Holistic Design, presented by Mitchell Lagran. Sometimes all it takes is hearing a different way of approaching a project to spark new ideas and enthusiasm, and as the day progressed it became evident that the theories presented by Mitchell are those that have merit as other developers referred to his session in their own presentations.

Important take-aways from Mitch’s session, which took place right after lunch, was that developers need to focus their intent – doing what they set out to do well, without distracting the gamer with extraneous mechanics that will not serve the game. In other words, try not to require your gamer to do more than what is necessary to keep the game flowing. Do not jar your gamer out of the experience, because if you disconnect the audience from the action too many times, they will not be inclined to continue playing. Mitch sited Bioware’s Mass Effect franchise as an excellent example of holistic game design – know where you are going and what you want to do before you start the journey. Make sure that all components of your game’s design work well together and serve the purpose of an enjoyable, replayable escape from the mundane.

I think that what I enjoyed most about the Industry Day sessions was that the speakers went beyond the art work and programming, opening the door to practices and principles brought into play long before the first world object is placed and characters are animated – as well as ideas that can be put into place once the game is shipped to help it become noticed in the mass market.

Jaakko Iisalo, Senior Game Designer and Matthew Wilson, Marketing Manager for Rovio Mobile opened the day with How to Design a Hit Game for the iPhone. The designing duo talked about the concepts, designs and marketing behind the hit game Angry Birds. The secret to their success was in part keeping everything simple, with the marketing plan following the basic premise of engaging their audience and letting the product speak for itself.

The four members of the Angry Birds team have learned how to seek out opportunities for their product and take advantage of them. Through smart marketing and an appealing product, Rovio was able to watch Angry Birds move up the sales charts and become an industry phenomena. With a very small to non-existent marketing budget, the developers took advantage of today’s social networking sites and social media basics to engage those who had already bought the game and to draw in those who had yet to put out their dollar in the various App Stores. One of the top take-aways from this session were to never give up and to never treat your titles like a disposable object once it is released – find out ways to give your audience more, add to their experience to keep them playing your game.

The second session was presented by United Front Games‘ Lead Producer Jeff O’Connell and Lead Producer Mike Skupa, whose topic was Action Game Mechanics In An Open-World Game. The pair took us on a photographic tour of Hong Kong, sharing a few of the 20 000 photos the studio shot on location in Hong Kong as they prepared to work on the upcoming action title True Crime: Hong Kong. What I enjoyed most about this presentation was how the development team planned to incorporate real-world elements into the game’s play mechanics while also capturing the essence of Hong Kong’s culture.

Some important take-aways for those who want to develop an open-world game are mission mapping and fast travel options for the player. Be mindful of where your missions begin and end – is there a disconnect between locations, and how will you keep the game-flow smooth for the player. Make sure that your features and environment serve to move the story forward while keeping the player constantly engaged, while remaining true to the physical setting you’ve chosen.

In Novel Game Designs With PlayStation Move and Eye, Sony Computer Entertainment R & D Software Engineer Anton Mikhailov led the audience through a very entertaining and informative session about the importance of your game’s controller system conveying your player’s sense of immediacy and accuracy, which serve to immerse the player in your product. PlayStation’s goal with Move was to give the player six degrees of movement through hand gestures, whether that player was wielding a sword, fighting in hand to hand combat or painting. The most important message in this session was that expressiveness in your controls is paramount, as this is what will give your players a feel for the experience, drawing them into an immersive and emergent style of gaming.

Those who aspire to become Community Managers in the game development community would have been very appreciative of the efforts which drove the Halo Waypoint team to design and launch a fully immersive experience for the Halo game community over three screens – Xbox 360, PC and mobile phone – while ensuring that they delivered the right content and features to the appropriate screen. This initiative helped to drive user loyalty as well as add to the ways gamers interacted with the Halo gaming community as a whole. Paul Parsons, Senior Game Designer at 343 Industries led an excellent session discussing the premise behind and the four key steps taken to launching WayPoint – and he was also one of the very first graduates of the VFS Game Design Programme.

Alan Shen, Senior Design Programme Manager for Microsoft’s Entertainment Experiences Group demonstrated the scope and design of Kinect’s Natural User Interface, touching on the expectations placed in the market by Hollywood through such futuristic films as BladeRunner, Iron Man, Minority Report and Star Trek. Part of the challenge was how to develop a system that would connect the gamer to the experience while working towards meeting those Hollywood expectations. As there is no common, global gesture language that would translate easily into game mechanics, the development team had to look at what actions would be intuitive, as well as fun and meaningful ways to educate gamers in regards to their playspace environment and full body game play.

Relic Entertainment Game Director Raphael van Lierop took the audience through a very engaging and entertaining session titled Steering The Rocket: Harnessing the Power of Creative People. One of the most important take-aways from this session is that creative people need to feel some type of empowerment and ownership of their creative process. Collaboration and communication is key in establishing this basis, providing you build the process on a firm base of ground rules which serve to create a climate of respect and encourage a guided form of idea generation and motivation. Micro management of your team will kill their creativity; you need to allow for creative freedom while following a clear line of communication in regards to decision making and assistance with issues that may arise. Raphael noted that he would be publishing the screens from his talk online, you can follow him on Twitter to be kept up to date on this.

Jonathan Gallina, who served as the Lead Game Designer on Tron: Evolution built on the day’s theme of collaboration, discussing the importance of co-operation in building a movie-based game and overcoming the stigma long associated with the cross-over of theatrical and game experience. The Tron: Evolution team were in a unique position, as the film and special effects were all done in Vancouver, giving each team the opportunity to work together, sharing both assets and ideas. One of the most important factors that cannot be overlooked when developing a game to accompany a movie’s debut is the time required to produce a game that will not end up on the pile of movie-game failures. As with previous sessions, Jonathan stated the importance of establishing ground rules for the project scope, prototyping and iteration, as well as working to mesh the story’s canon within the game.

EA-Visceral Lead Designer Seth Marinello covered many design features that can be used to create fun through fear as experienced by the gamer in Dead Space and Dead Space 2. Some of the most important factors to build into a horror-survival game are the ways in which environment, lighting and music all inter-connect to create the emotion of fear, while also giving the gamer some breathing room to recover from each scary episode before building to the next one. As also stated by previous speakers, do not jar your players out of the experience  – draw on their fears while still giving them the cushion of knowing that the horror is not real without making it apparent that the situation is contrived. Put your players in a position of power at key points in the game, but then take it away to enhance the scariness of the scenario. A loss of the feeling of empowerment will build on the player’s fear in a given situation, while the ability to work through the scene and survive will drive the triumphant feeling a gamer needs to carry on through the entire story.

The speaker sessions were concluded by Cory Stockton, Lead Content Designer for Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft franchise. The most insightful parts of his presentation was how to use tools such as mind-mapping, Adobe Illustrator and Visio Flowcharts will provide designers with the ability to create a game which is true to scale and follows a logical flow. It is important for design teams to make use of the tools available to them, adapting them into a process which works for that particular project and its goals. Creative people are visual – build on their ability to see flaws and nurture ideas by giving them visual guidelines, whether it’s a wall poster of the game’s world or a chart showing every person on the team and his or her areas of responsibility. Flowcharts are also excellent for tracking missions, quests and production times while wikis are useful in keeping the entire team up to date with production changes, assets and storyline. The important take-away from this session is to find the right tools and make full use of them throughout the entire production process.

Once the sessions concluded and just prior to recognizing BigPark’s contribution to the game development programme at VFS with its annual Service Recognition plaque, VFS  Head of Game Design Dave Warfield introduced Relic Entertainment General Manager Jonathan Dowdeswell. Jonathan spoke of a tragic event last year which many of us were sadly familiar with – the untimely death of Company of Heroes’ lead game designer Brian Wood in a motor vehicle accident last September. Jonathan related how touched Brian’s wife and family were by the outpouring of support shown to them by both the gamer and game developer communities around the world, and that he was pleased to announce that to both honour and continue Brian’s contribution to the international game community, as well as in memory of his passions in life, Relic will be awarding a four-month internship to three graduating VFS Game Design students each year who exhibit a similar passion and excellence in game design.

“Relic Entertainment has worked with VFS for a number of years and in the past has had employees who taught classes as part of the Game Design curriculum,” says Dowdeswell. “Continuing this partnership in a meaningful and long lasting effort by introducing the Brian Wood Memorial Game Design Internship was a natural fit for all concerned.”

The inaugural internship will be awarded in February 2011, and the chosen VFS Game Design graduate will have the opportunity to work directly with a team at Relic, pioneering exciting projects that impact the development of titles at the Vancouver-based studio.

“We are honoured and humbled to be a part of carrying on Brian’s legacy with this memorial,” says Dave Warfield, Head of VFS Game Design. “Not only does it represent the values of game design and supporting new designers that were such a big part of his passion, but it allows us to share that with the community that was so affected by his tragic death.”

Sunday’s programme for the annual Game Design Expo consisted of the annual Open House, when the school invites future students and their parents to take part in some hands-on development classes, pass some time in the VFS Arcade and interact with programme instructors. Also taking part in the Open House was the Women In Games Vancouver group, who offer networking and advice to women who work or who are interested in working in interactive media. As with Saturday’s attendees, the locally developed zombie killing game Drumskulls was a popular point of participation for the 500 Open House registrants. Congratulations to the entire organizational team, students, volunteers, sponsors and speakers at this year’s Game Design Expo for a job very well done.