Village Gamer

San Francisco-based social game developer TheBroth announced today that Victoria, BC mobile and social media game monetization company Playboost, a subsidiary of NeverBlue, has developed Gamebar, a custom game-play monetization toolbar for Barn Buddy, a top game on Facebook with 1.8 million monthly users and the #1 game on Hi5. The new Barn Buddy “Gamebar” toolbar was officially launched on September 3, 2010. The toolbar is uniquely designed to add new income streams for TheBroth beyond revenue share off of search feeds, plus increase Barn Buddy’s user engagement.

“With Barn Buddy, TheBroth is clearly at the top of their game and has captured the imagination and market share of Facebook fans,” said Chris Dykstra, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Playboost. “It’s exciting to work with a group of individuals that challenges us to find new solutions for revenue and user engagement. Their attitude and drive underscores why TheBroth is a leader in Facebook farm games.”

The newly created Gamebar is even further engaging its most avid fans. “I find even I‘m playing the game more! We look forward to increased monetization with Playboost’s Gamebar,” said Markus Weichselbaum, CEO at TheBroth.

In addition to Playboost’s successful Gamebar product, the studio recently launched their Mobile Offer Platform which allows Android and iPhone game developers to monetize their free to play games.

The bookshelves at 155 public school libraries across Canada will now receive a much needed boost in books through the second annual Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Adopt a School program. From September 12th to October 2nd, Indigo, Chapters and Coles stores across Canada “adopted” public schools in their communities. Through the generous donations of customers and employees school libraries were rejuvenated with funds raised by in-store activities and donations.

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The federal government’s use of handheld communications devices and its practices for disposing of unneeded paper documents and surplus computers could expose the personal information of Canadians to unauthorized disclosure, Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart has warned.

The findings, stemming from two separate privacy audits conducted by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC), were highlighted in the organization’s 2009-2010 annual report on the Privacy Act, tabled in Parliament today. The Act applies to federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations.

“Our audits turned up some disturbing gaps in the privacy policies and practices of government institutions,” Commissioner Stoddart said. “Whether they’re using a BlackBerry, shredding old papers or disposing of outdated computer equipment, public servants need to know that the security of people’s personal data is a top priority.”

The annual report examines how the government’s holdings of personal data are affected by technology and considers the impact of full-body airport scanners and other national security measures on the privacy rights of Canadians. The report also summarizes key investigations into privacy complaints and data breaches that the Office conducted under the Privacy Act in 2009-2010.

“Considering the vast amounts of personal information on Canadians that the government holds, problems are relatively rare,” the Commissioner acknowledged. But, she noted, the data that the government collects, for purposes such as taxation, income support, the correctional system and international travel, is highly sensitive. Any unauthorized collection, use or disclosure of such data could therefore have serious consequences.

“When it comes to safeguarding the personal information entrusted to it, the government of Canada must always be held to the very highest standards of account.”

Here are some highlights of today’s reports:

* Wireless audit: Of five federal entities examined, none had fully assessed the threats and risks inherent in wireless communications. Gaps in policies and/or practices resulted in weak password protection for smart phones and inadequate encryption for Wi-Fi networks and data stored on mobile devices. Shortcomings were also noted in the disposal of surplus handheld devices and the use of PIN-to-PIN messaging, a form of direct communication between two smart phones that is vulnerable to interception. Read the rest of this entry »

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) today announced the appointment of Catalina Briceño to the position of Director, Industry and Market Trends. In this newly created role, Ms. Briceño will ensure that the CMF’s policies for supporting the production of Canadian television and digital media content are aligned with emerging trends and developments in the industry in Canada and internationally. She will monitor key trends and developments in terms of emerging technologies; business models and production financing; and regulation in order to provide the CMF with market intelligence to develop effective policies.

With over 13 years of experience in the audiovisual and new media industry, Ms. Briceño comes to the CMF from Salambo Productions, where she helped build the strategy and business model behind the internationally acclaimed, multiplatform project Têtes à claques as Producer and Director of Operations. She began her career in 1997 when she founded Caliope Communications Inc., which developed, coordinated financing for, and produced audiovisual content using evolving new media technologies, from digital visual effects to 3D animation to convergent web applications. Over the years, she consulted for various private and public funds and instructed a number of workshops through INIS on new media financing for audiovisual students and professionals. She is regularly invited to speak at conferences about the challenges and opportunities linked to using web and interactive applications in the entertainment sector.

Until joining the CMF, Ms. Briceño served as Vice Chair of the Board of the Regroupement des producteurs multimédia (RPM). In 2008, she received the Prix Séville de la Relève from the Association of Women in Film, Television, and New Media.

Ms. Briceño will join the CMF on October 25, 2010.

Woozworld, a virtual world powered by tweens, announces today it now has more than 1 million avatars created in over 80 different countries, and 2 million user-generated virtual spaces in just over eight months since its late December 2009 launch.

“We are extremely proud of what Woozworld has accomplished in just eight short months,” said Eric Brassard, CEO of Woozworld. “Through our highly engaging worlds that offer relevant user experiences to our tween and teen audiences, a safe online environment where parents can let their kids have fun and learn at the same time, and a smart business model, we’ve made Woozworld a success in less than a year.”

Targeted for kids ages nine to 14, Woozworld provides an engaging and interactive experience by letting them create their own world where they can fashion their own characters, make new Woozworld friends, do virtual business, set-up activities and essentially drive the show. All personal information is protected and Woozworld strictly conforms to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection act.

In addition to hitting more than 1 million profiles in eight months, Woozworld has also partnered with some of the leading companies today, including Facebook;  Wallie Card, a payment method card for Internet payments; and Zong, the leading mobile payments platform for digital goods and services sellers.

“We’ve worked with many different companies and we truly believe in our partnerships given what they represent and have to offer,” says Mathieu Lampron, VP of Operations for Woozworld. “In fact, we’ve seen our sales rapidly climb in the last few months; we’re excited to see our business relationships grow.”

Moneyville.ca has opened the town gates to financial empowerment. With Canadian-focused content, interactive tools and an online community, Canadians now have access to everything they need to take control of their finances, all in one place. Moneyville.ca will draw on experts to provide the straight talk on personal finance for Canadians at every stage of life.

“We are overloaded with complicated financial information, and often don’t have the tools available to fully understand how the news of the day will impact personal finances,” says Adam Mayers, editor of Moneyville.ca. “With fresh content offered daily, Moneyville.ca will be a trusted resource giving visitors the tools they need to be successful.”

This week on Moneyville.ca:

• Author of The Wealthy Barber, David Chilton, gives an exclusive peek at his new book, The Wealthy Barber Returns: Significantly Older and Marginally Wiser, Dave Chilton Offers His Unique Perspectives on the World of Money.
• Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty shares five tips he is giving his three 19-year-old sons.
• Mutual fund expert Gordon Pape takes us through the deadly sins of investing.
• Veteran financial journalists Ellen Roseman and James Daw share the most important lessons they’ve learned in 25+ years of covering personal finance.

Moneyville.ca will cover a wide spectrum of personal finance topics, such as budgeting, saving, borrowing, investing, retirement, insurance, tax and real estate in relationship to every stage of life. The “Moms on Money” columnists will arm families with the information they need to nurture the financial health of the whole family. Well-known television personality Alison Griffiths kicks off her new column with a series of videos on investing. And, setting 20 and 30-somethings on the right track to financial know-how, bloggers Adam Goodman and Krystal Yee will share their secrets to turning their finances around.

Whether you’re wondering if your investment philosophy makes sense, or thinking about going fixed or variable on your mortgage, Moneyville.ca will give visitors access to more than 30 tools and calculators.

According to a recent survey conducted on thestar.com, two-thirds of people feel comfortable with their finances, but only one-third feel in control. “I feel passionate about helping people get to a point where they feel they can count on themselves to be in control of their own financial situation,” says Alison Griffiths. “You have to devote a bit of time up front to get the money side of your life in order, particularly with respect to investments, which are a big mystery to most people. But after that it only takes 30 – 60 minutes a month to stay on top of your financial goals.”

Future Shop is using a modern form of recruitment to hire more than 4,000 tech savvy seasonal associates by turning to social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter. Canada’s largest consumer electronics retailer and e-tailer currently employs nearly 10,000 in its 146 stores, meaning its seasonal hiring blitz will add more than 40 per cent more employees to stores across the country.

“To find an educated team of associates to help shoppers find the most exciting gifts this holiday season, Future Shop’s recruitment plans go beyond traditional job postings,” said Chris Taylor, Vice President, HR, Future Shop. “We recognize that most of our customers and associates are social media savvy, so what better way to recruit them through channels they frequently use.”

Future Shop’s hiring blitz begins nationally at the start of October, allowing the company enough time to properly train the thousands of seasonal associates that will support our current full and part-time Product Experts and Associates. The new hires will be in stores until January to help customers find exciting gifts in all areas including Cellshop, appliances, gaming and mobile audio.

“With the holidays being Future Shop’s biggest and busiest season, we’re thrilled that we can create thousands of new jobs for Canadians as we prepare for another successful shopping season in our stores and on our website,” said Taylor. “There are currently nearly two million employees in Canada’s retail trade and we are proud to be a major player in that space.”

Interactive Ontario (IO) is pleased to welcome Patricia McCutcheon and Armen Karapetyan to its growing team and is bidding farewell to Sarah Baird, VP Programmes and Operations.

Patricia McCutcheon will be taking on the role of Director of Programmes where she will oversee programming for the upcoming iLunch 9.0 series, GameON: Finance and INplay 2011 conferences. Armen Karapetyan is IO’s new Director of Operations, and will be primarily responsible for IO’s financials, forecasting and human resources management.

Patricia McCutcheon was the National Organizer, Digital Media for ACTRA National for 4 years. She was with ACTRA for 7 years prior to that holding various positions within the Commercials department for ACTRA Toronto. After leaving ACTRA, Patricia had short-term contracts with the OMDC, Allstream and most recently as Director, Business Development at Spark Inc. a corporate event management company. Patricia studied Commerce with a major in marketing at Concordia University. She has also studied Business and New Media at Ryerson University.

Prior to his move to Canada and current role with IO, Armen was the Operations Director of the Barthelmes Conservatory of Music in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Before leading Conservatory operations, Armen also served as finance and grants manager for several international relief and development organizations, such as Feed the Children, Open Society Institute and Jinishian Memorial Foundation. Armen holds a Master’s degree in Physics from Yerevan State University in Armenia and Master’s degree in Business Administration from American University of Armenia.

“We are very excited to have Patricia and Armen join our team. With their wealth of knowledge and experience, I know they will strengthen IO’s efforts to better the interactive industry in Ontario,” said Ian Kelso, President and CEO, Interactive Ontario.

IO also notes the departure of Sarah Baird, who joined Interactive Ontario in 2005 as the organization’s first full-time employee. Over the past five years Sarah has overseen the programming and logistics for all IO’s efforts. In this time IO has successfully hosted over 750 speakers at over 70 events ranging in size from industry networking events to multi-day/multi-stream conference such as IN. Since Sarah joined the organization, IO has grown from just over 50 companies to more than 260 companies at present.

“Sarah’s contribution to IO has been critical to its success. Her passion and dedication to the industry and to our mission as an organization has always been exceptional. We certainly wish her the best and thank her for her many years of service,” says Kelso.

Taking on an expanded role within the organization is Max Berdowski, now Vice President, Business Development & Communications. In addition to developing partnerships, Max takes on responsibility for IO membership, communications and marketing. As well, Communications Director, Danielle Engels, who has been with IO for 2.5 years adds IO’s marketing efforts to her portfolio.

You are invited to join fellow education and industry leaders for a one-day Summit opportunity to gain valuable knowledge from leading experts, network and re-define Canada’s Digital Blueprint to ensure our future leaders succeed in the 21st Century Global knowledge-based economy.

As part of MindShare Learning’s mission to push the 21st Century learning envelope in Canada and
strengthen the connection between education and business, MindShare Learning is launching its inaugural MindShare Learning Report EdTech Leadership Summit, generously sponsored by Epson, Pearson Canada, Discovery Education, Abelearn, Global Scholar and York University.

This one-day summit will focus on current hot topics in the K-12 and post-secondary education technology space, aiming to further engage stakeholders in shaping the future direction of a vital sector that most effectively prepares students with the essential skills to successfully compete in the global knowledge-based economy.

The Summit will take place on November 2nd at York University Research Tower, Conference Centre and will feature these speakers:

* Dr. Don Knezek, CEO, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education)
* Jennifer Corriero, Co-founder and Executive Director, TakingITGlobal
* Kathy Hurley, Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships, for Pearson School Companies
* Hall Davidson, Director, Discovery Educator Network

This event will be very beneficial to education leaders from K12 and post-secondary institutions, government and industry leaders who are globally minded and prepared to engage and champion a future vision in mapping a digital blueprint to support 21st Century student success.

Collaborative round table discussions will be held, and your input is welcome on the following hot topics:

* The emerging Digital Classroom
* Forging successful strategic partnerships between education and business
* Funding in education: Building sustainable learning environments
* Envisioning Canada’s Digital Blueprint for the 21st Century

Toronto-based start-up DrinkBox Studios today announced that their alien-invasion-themed co-op platformer Tales from Space: About a Blob will be released in early 2011 as part of Sony Computer Entertainment America’s “Pub Fund” program.

Developers looking to release a game through the Pub Fund initiative must be prepared to build it to completion and commit to a period of console platform exclusivity. In return, approved developers receive a development-budget-matching royalty guarantee from SCEA. A number of popular PlayStation®Network games, including Burn Zombie Burn by DoubleSix and Joe Danger by Hello Games, have already been released through the program.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M44usucUWpg]

DrinkBox CEO Ryan MacLean had this to say about the initiative: “Pub Fund has been a good fit for us. The royalty guarantee and other Pub Fund terms have allowed us to confidently focus on finishing our game while retaining ownership and artistic control over the project. Working with SCEA has been a great experience in general: The advice they have given us over the course of development has helped us build a better game. We’re excited to be working with them on this project!”

Moncton software developer DOVICO Software has announced DOVICO Planning & Timesheet, a new software product from the makers of the industry leading DOVICO Timesheet. Building upon DOVICO’s Time Tracking foundation and user experiences, this new product answers the need for customers who want quick answers to simple questions such as: ‘Who is available and who is not?’, ‘How long will this project REALLY take to complete?’, ‘How much will this project cost us?’.

“Our goal for DOVICO Planning & Timesheet was a simple and easy project planning tool that satisfies a manager’s need to have a good insight into employees’ current and future availability – while keeping our core time tracking features in place.” said Bob Gorham, Product Manager at DOVICO. “Equally important is the ability to uncover what is keeping everyone occupied and , more significantly, a method to try ‘what if scenarios’ when planning a project and seeing the impact of these before moving ahead.”

DOVICO Planning & Timesheet: It’s easy to try and the first 30 days are free.

Immediate Benefits

* Determine whether you should take on a project or not.
* Ensure that your proposed project plan is accurate and profitable.
* Know which of your employees are being under/over utilized.
* Easy transition from a spreadsheet template such as MS Excel, simply copy and paste!
* Affirm that your best talent is working on your mission critical projects.
* Save time and costs in the planning process with our innovative tool that unites project planning and resource utilization.
* Reduce project overruns with our project forecasting tools so you can fix any issues proactively.
* Shorten billing cycles and get paid sooner.
* Deliver projects on time and on budget.
* Easily shift project priorities with our resource reassignment tools.
* High employee adoption with our intuitive time tracking solution.

I just received information from DFAIT that due to its relationship with San Diego’s high tech industry organization CommNexus, Canadian companies are welcome to apply to participate at MarketLink, which takes place in San Diego this November 17th & 18th. The deadline for interested companies to apply is October 22nd 2010. In conjunction with this invitation to participate, Verizon Wireless is looking for companies who specialize in these areas:

Privacy/identity management
Collaboration tools
Personal health & wellness monitoring
Consumer Cloud-based services (content sharing, gaming, etc.)
Mobile security
Mobile Services and Applications marketing tools
Mobile Application Development enablers (API management, porting, voice APIs, context awareness, mash-ups, etc)
Customer Analytics
In-car mobile experience
Hardware innovation
Voice innovation

Experienced game developers have confirmed the formation of a new independent studio named Renown Entertainment Inc. in Vancouver. Founded in 2009 by James Lau and Bill Li, the company will develop, publish and distribute interactive entertainment for video game systems, wireless devices and online.

President and Creative Director, James Lau, brings more than a decade of experience in the games and visual effects industries to drive the direction of the studio and game development.

“With today’s software, communication platforms and support for digital distribution, independent developers are empowered to create Triple-A games and reach a worldwide audience. This shift in the industry allows us to focus on crafting high quality games of exceptional value with efficient, multi-discipline teams on any platform including big blockbusters, which are usually reserved for large publishers and developers.”

“It’s a great time to be in game development despite the downturn over the last couple of years. It revealed a lot of issues that need to be addressed in order for developers to keep innovating and remain profitable while maintaining quality. With this in mind, we’re implementing new methods of game development for the rapidly evolving industry.”

Co-Founder and Technical Director, Bill Li feels “Engineering is only a means to an end to realize exceptional gameplay and a memorable experience. Our goal is to emotionally captivate players and keep them coming back for more.”

It is with these philosophies that Renown strives to transcend the artistic and technical aspects of game development to create truly rewarding interactive experiences.

Renown will launch their first game, Waves: Survivor, in October for the iPhone® and iPod Touch®. In this debut game, gamers will be challenged to see how many days they can survive in a rowboat while lost at sea. Obstacles will include riding huge waves and fending off dangerous creatures like the electric jelly fish and hungry sharks. Your character will also require some strong swimming skills as gamers build up their collection of deep-sea treasures and celebrate achievements by rockin’ out on their paddle guitar.

Waves: Survivor will also featuring leaderboards (via Facebook and Twitter), interactive water physics, continuous survival gameplay, touch and accelerometer controls, collectible items and more. Renown Entertainment’s second game (currently referred to as iOS Game D) is scheduled for released this winter. It would appear from the studio’s game listing that they are also working on a Triple A title for console and PC gamers.

TechnoMontréal’s Chairman of the Board and Senior Vice President and Director of the Montreal office for DMR-Fujitsu, Mr. Yves Pelletier, M.SC., CMC, FCMA announced today the appointment of three new members to the Board of the organization. TechnoMontréal is one of the major Information and Communications Technology (ICT) clusters in North America and is a powerful economic driver for entrepreneurs and creators of technology in Greater Montreal.

According to the OECD, ICT and the Internet are essential infrastructures for today’s economy. Given the significant contribution of the ICT industry to the knowledge economy, competition among host countries and regions to attract global leaders is increasingly aggressive, particularly in terms of incentives. The ICT industry provides over 120,000 jobs in the metropolitan area.

“We are faced with increasing global competition in the Information and Communications Technology field,” added Mr. Pelletier. “Unlike other traditional industries, we are facing a shortage of manpower which could, in the more or less long term, weaken the position of Montreal and Quebec on the world stage,” said Mr. Pelletier. “This situation is even more preoccupying considering that we have a recognized talent base and dynamic entrepreneurs that appeal to investors.” According to the president, our priority must be investing in the workforce, whether through training, immigration or tapping into the large pool of talented “baby boomers”.

The Information and Communications Technology sector plays an exceptional role in productivity, growth, job creation and the attraction of investments globally. “TechnoMontréal’s Board of Directors can further support the ICT cluster by stimulating its development in the region and strengthening its position among the world leaders,” said Mr. Pelletier. It is in this context that TechnoMontréal invites governments, entrepreneurs and creators to rally around major developmental projects and to support innovation, financing and the commercialisation of ICT companies. “I sincerely thank all the Board members who are willing to devote their time to our collective success and bring their experience to the growth and expansion of the industry globally,” he added.

New members joining the TechnoMontréal team come from the private and institutional sectors of the industry:

Mrs. Lyne Bouchard, Vice-Rector of the Longueuil campus and Vice-Rector of Information Technology Université de Sherbrooke
Mr. Denis Faubert, Senior Manager, Hydro-Québec Research Institute (IREQ)
Mr. André Gamache, Strategic Advisor, École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS)

Complete Board of Directors: Read the rest of this entry »

Telefilm Canada is has mad public its 2009 International Markets Report (PDF). The report spotlights Telefilm’s key role in supporting Canada’s audiovisual industry at foreign markets. Despite the economic downturn during the year, the report highlights the remarkable increase in foreign sales achieved by Canadian producers and distributors at international markets and festivals where Telefilm organizes and runs the Canada Pavilion: the European Film Market at the Berlin Film Festival, MIPTV, the Cannes Film Market and MIPCOM.

Highlights

* Telefilm invested about $1.2M in support of Canadian companies’ participation at international markets. Every dollar invested by Telefilm within the framework of its foreign activities generated $16 in sales deals for Canadian film companies, compared with $11 in 2008 and $9 in 2007. If we include pre-sales and probable sales (that is, sales deals likely to be closed quickly after the market), this figure jumps to $100 for every dollar invested.
* In 2009, total sales and pre-sales of Canadian films and television programs stood at $17.6M, a 26% increase over the $14M earned in 2008. Negotiations conducted during the international markets generated $90.7M in probable sales. This brings the total of sales, pre-sales and probable sales to $108.3M, a 27% increase over the previous year’s total of $85M.
* In 2009, the Cannes Festival was the most profitable market in terms of the ratio of sales, pre-sales and co-production/co-venturing agreements per dollar invested: every dollar invested by Telefilm generated more than $333 in economic activity.

“There’s no doubt that Canada’s audiovisual industry benefits from the strategic support it obtains abroad from Telefilm,” said Carolle Brabant, Executive Director of Telefilm Canada. “We’re very pleased to see how dynamic our companies are when they negotiate co-production and co-venturing agreements with foreign partners. Telefilm’s activities at international markets provide a real showcase for Canadian talent abroad and prove that Canadian products can compete on the world stage.”

On the international stage, Telefilm, in partnership with members of the International Business Development Group, offers strategic and operational support to Canadian companies by organizing the Canada Pavilion at a number of international markets and festivals. At the Pavilion, Telefilm supports producers’ and distributors’ sales promotion efforts through initiatives that target investors and buyers from around the world. These activities also allow Canadian and foreign producers to pool their resources in order to co-produce films and television programs. Finally, Telefilm supports the international launch of Canadian productions through special marketing activities at festivals deemed to provide the best business opportunities for Canadian companies.

Overall, Canadian companies stated that they were very satisfied with the full range of services that Telefilm offered abroad in 2009.