CESA, organisers for The Tokyo Game Show, have just issued a media update on this years event scheduled for Sept. 22 – 24. The theme is “New Excitement. New Sensations. A New Generation” as they celebrate the 10th year anniversary since its launch in 1996. It is also the year in which the latest in computer entertainment, from next generation systems, to home platform software, online games and mobile applications come together under one roof at Makuhari Messe.
Adobe, which was established in 1982, has 54 overseas offices and more than half its revenue comes from outside the United States. Japan accounts for about 20 percent of revenue, positioning itself as the second-largest country in these terms. It boasts advanced mobile devices and is likely to continue to be one of the strategic markets for Adobe as the company has increased efforts to push its products to mobiles.
[an interesting interview with the incoming president of Adobe Japan — Eds]
A new report by Japanese business site Tech On notes that Japan’s mobile industry is booming – and that mobile gaming is on the rise, too. According to the report figures released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Communication state that the mobile industry has grown to 722.4 billion Yen (4.9 billion Euro) over the past 12 months – a rise of 39 per cent.
Guppy Games has selected Kotobuki Solution Co., Ltd. (KEMCO Japan) as their distribution partner for releasing mobile game contents in Japan. The first title for distribution will be Jump Girls with an expected launch by fall 2006. Jump Girls is a strategy puzzle game jointly developed by ZIO Interactive which has been very popular on South Korean carriers. KEMCO Japan will be the distribution partner for launching Jump Girls with the four major Japanese carriers: NTT DoCoMo, KDDI, Vodafone, and Willcom.
Namco Networks and G-Mode have announced a strategic partnership for the U.S mobile gaming market according to the companies press release [.PDF in Japanese]. “Partnering with G-Mode expands our already large catalog of entertaining games, meeting the ever-increasing consumer demand for casual content,” said Kenji Hisatsune, President and CEO of Namco Networks. “G-Mode’s games have been hugely successful in Japan, and we believe this popularity will continue in North America.”
Sulake Corporation, which operates the leading online teen community Habbo, has started a new strategic cooperation in Japan. Movida Group, a joint venture by SoftBank BB Corp. and Asian Groove, has agreed to invest 6 million Euros of equity into Sulake Corporation. The investment is executed through Movida Investment International (WWJ has a video interview with Habbo Hotel for mobile from the Tokyo Game Show, fall 2004).
