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Nokia sells its Espoo, Finland HQ for $222 million, will stay on as tenant
As promised, Nokia has sold its Espoo, Finland headquarters to another Finnish company, Exilion, and signed a long-term lease to stay on as principal tenant. The handset maker reported that the property, dubbed Nokia House, went for 170 million euros ($222 million) and that the sale of the 48,000 square meter (517,000 square feet) property would be completed by the end of the year. Nokia reportedly made the deal to help stem the flow from its recent poor financial performance, but will at least get to stay on in the building it's occupied since 1997. Check the PR after the break for more info.
Facebook allowed to triple size of its HQ, pays $10 million for the privilege
Swollen with cash following its IPO, Facebook is looking to expand its headquarters in Menlo Park. Its plan to triple its workforce there from 2,200 to 6,600 people was approved by local officials last night, removing the previous cap that allowed a maximum of 3,600 messy, resource-consuming humans. In lieu of the added burden on the city, Facebook will have to contribute $850,000 per year for ten years, plus a one-time payment of $1,000,000. The start of a surge towards greater products and profits, or the beginning of a complacent corporate decline? We'll let the stock market decide.
Apple details neighbors on Campus 2 plans, extends rare request for feedback
Cupertino residents may have received an unsolicited package from their most prominent neighbor this week. No, it's not a new iPad, or an early look at the iPhone 5 -- instead, people close to Apple (from a physical perspective) opened the glossy mailing to reveal a detailed look at Apple Campus 2, which will consist of 176 acres currently occupied by "aging buildings" and trees. As we already know, the campus will feature one main circular four-story building with 2.8 million square feet of office and common space, along with an additional 300,000 square feet set aside for dedicated (secure) research buildings. There will be a restaurant, fitness center and other facilities aimed to "reduce automobile trips" as part of the company's plan to protect the environment. Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer appeals to neighbors in a single-page letter, offering additional information upon receipt of a pre-stamped response card, which also prompts neighbors to add their name to a list of supporters, attend a public meeting or write a letter to show their support for the new Apple complex. You'll find Oppenheimer's letter in full after the break, along with additional photos at the source link.
Gearbox to move HQ to new $61 million building in Frisco, TX
Randy Pitchford's Gearbox Software (currently working on Borderlands 2) has entered into a lease for a 61,000 square foot space in Dallas, Texas, part of a new $61 million "mixed-use" space called Frisco Square that will also host other businesses, "220 apartments, 50,000 square feet of retail space and an 800-space parking garage," according to the Dallas Business Journal. The project is scheduled to break ground sometime next year, and will be done in 2013 if things go as planned. At that time, Gearbox is scheduled to move its headquarters from about 15 miles away in Plano, TX to Frisco. A developer for the project says that Gearbox is "the straw stirring the drink" in development, with various other businesses showing interest in space after the initial deal. That's all fine and good, but we just hope there's a nice penthouse. Duke can't be expected to move in somewhere without a fully-stocked penthouse!
Steve Jobs reveals Apple's new spaceship campus, calls it the 'best office building in the world' (video)
Shortly after taking the stage at WWDC, Steve Jobs made an appearance before the Cupertino City Council to pitch the local governing body on Apple's ambition to build a new campus. The site for the curvaceous, four-story, "human-scale" building to house 13,000 employees is the original home of HP's computer systems division, land that was recently sold to Apple. The property is currently covered by a series of big asphalt parking lots. Apple's plan would increase the landscape coverage from 20 to 80 percent with the help of a senior arborist from Stanford who will help restore some of the indigenous plant life to the property, including the apricot orchards. Apple plans to make the campus' energy center the facility's primary power generator using natural gas and other "clean energy" sources -- the city would simply provide backup power when needed. Of course, what would a Jobs presentation be without a few choice superlatives? In this case, Jobs claims that the new curved-glass facility will be the "best office building in the world," luring in students of architecture anxious for a peek. Apple plans to break ground in 2012 with a 2015 move-in date. As an aside, it's fascinating (and yes, troubling) to observe Gilbert Wong, Mayor of Cupertino, guffaw at Steve's "jokes" like a smitten schoolgirl, going so far as to fawn over his own iPad 2 in front of the assembly. For his part, Jobs seems to bite his tongue during several exchanges particularly when one city council member tries to extort free WiFi from Apple in an apparent quid pro quo. Click through to see what we mean. [Thanks, GB]
Tesla opens its workshop, shows off more Model S prototypes
It's expected that when the Tesla Model S hits full production it'll be rolling out of the company's newly acquired facility in Fremont, California -- formerly the NUMMI plant jointly owned by General Motors and Toyota. For now, though, the cars are being put together at Tesla HQ in Palo Alto and the company invited some media to go check things out. GigaOM has some pictures showing various Teslas in various states of disassembly, including motor and rear suspension assemblies about to be bolted in, and Chief Engineer Peter Rawlinson talking about the car's massive front radiator assembly. Oh, and the matte orange models? No, they're sadly not the first examples of a special General Lee edition. Those cars are destined to be run into various walls at various speeds to test the car's performance in a crash, much like this poor Volvo was. Do spare a thought.
SlingPlayer Mobile for Android - now with high quality video
There you have it. High quality video streams, just like the iPhone has -- undoubtedly provided by your SOLO or PRO-HD Slingbox -- on your Android SlingPlayer Mobile client. If you haven't already copped, it'll be $29.99, while owners should just mash the upgrade all button until they're rewarded with version 1.2.
Nokia Q&A reveals more MeeGo details and tablet plans -- says Android 'risk of commodification was very high'
The Steve show just ended with both Elop and Ballmer hosting a very informative media Q&A following the reveal of Nokia's plan to use Windows Phone 7 as its "primary smartphone platform." Here are the highlights: No specific announcement for when we'll see the first Nokia Windows Phone. Ballmer mentioned that the engineering teams have spent a lot of time together already. Elop also confirmed that Nokia is a Finnish company and always will be -- they will not be moving to Silicon Valley or anywhere else. Ballmer said that the partnership is "not exclusive" but some things that Microsoft is doing with Nokia are "unique" allowing Nokia to differentiate itself in the market. Elop added that it's important for the Windows Phone 7 ecosystem to thrive, which means that multiple vendors must succeed. Elop didn't believe that Nokia could create a new ecosystem around MeeGo fast enough. Nokia will "substantially reduce" R&D expenditures while increasing R&D productivity moving forward. Nokia did talk with Google about adopting Android but decided that it "would have difficulty differentiating within that ecosystem" and the "commoditization risk was very high -- prices, profits, everything being pushed down, value being moved out to Google which was concerning to us." Microsoft presented the best option for Nokia to resume the fight in the high end smartphone segment. Elop clarified that MeeGo will ship this year but "not as part of another broad smarpthone platform strategy, but as an opportunity to learn." Something that sounds very similar to position Nokia took with its so-called "experimental" Maemo-based N900 last year. After the first (and apparently, only) MeeGo device ships this year, the MeeGo team will then "change their focus into an exploration of future platforms, future devices, future user experiences." Trying to determine the "next disruption" in smartphones. Responding to "hope for a broad MeeGo-based ecosystem," Elop said that Nokia simply wasn't moving fast enough to effectively win and compete against Apple and Google. Windows Phone makes it a "three-horse race," something that Elop says is pleasing to the carriers he's been speaking with. Nokia has different options for its tablet strategy including using something from Microsoft or something that Nokia has developed internally.
Hero up! Hands-on with Marvel Super Hero Squad Online
Back in May, I scored Massively's first real look at Super Hero Squad Online, the Marvel-flavored, kid-friendly MMO from Gazillion Entertainment and The Amazing Society. I was smitten with the game at the time, and so when Gazillion offered me the opportunity to take a peek at the newest build earlier this week, I jumped at the chance. Who can resist some hands-on time with such an adorable toy! (Answer to rhetorical question: no one, which is why you should go sign up for beta right now.) Plus, if I learned anything the last time, it was that I have a duty to relentlessly inquire about Squirrel Girl. Am I right? Gazillion PR Manager Keith Mutzman and The Amazing Society's Director of Games Jay Minn wasted no time bringing me up to speed on the progress of the game as the team heads to PAX this weekend, so I'll pay that forward -- join me after the break and we'll dig in and hero up!
Nintendo of America opens new Redmond HQ
[TechFlash] We imagine the interior of Nintendo's new headquarters in Redmond, Washington to embody the four quadrants it's divided into: Mario, Donkey Kong, Yoshi and Wario. Unfortunately, Nintendo wouldn't allow press to take interior photos of the company's recently opened US headquarters, citing "security concerns," so we just don't know. Nor do any images exist of the "gigantic top-floor conference room" that's appropriately named "The Master Sword;" though, according to Techflash, it's said to resemble a Wall Street-style conference room more than anything you'd find in a Hyrulian office -- the 75,000 square feet of greenery on the roof would likely make Link feel more at home. As you can see above, Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aime and Nintendo worldwide head Satoru Iwata were hilariously joined by Washington Governor Christine Gregoire and her friends the Mario brothers for the building's opening ceremonies last week. "Hopefully this new building will help [employees] to be even more creative and productive, and continue to put smiles on the faces of our consumers," Iwata said of the new HQ. The beautiful facility -- detailed in several photos here -- is said to house 650 staff members. No official number of hidden Yoshis has been given.
LG bringing 20-key, WinMo-powered HQ to AT&T?
The Jack's just fine and dandy if you want a WinMo Standard device on AT&T with a portrait QWERTY keyboard, but what if you're, say, coming from a Pearl? Odds are you're pretty comfortable with a SureType-style 20-key layout, and that's what the GW600 HQ from LG promises. This device sorta made the rounds -- albeit covertly -- at MWC a few months back, and we hadn't taken it as a likely candidate for American release, but this slide seems to prove us wrong. It's got triband 3G, a 2 megapixel cam, microSD expansion up to 16GB, Windows Mobile 6.1, 320 x 240 non-touch display, and a lofty target date of July 6, which might give you just a little more pause before you make that Jack buy. Follow the break for a closer look at those 20 glorious keys -- along with the rest of the HQ.
Blizzard finishes courtyard statue
That statue of an Orc on a Wolf (the same one that every Blizzard employee got a copy of when they moved into their new HQ a little while back) is now completed and standing outside of their main building in Irvine, California. The OC (don't call it that) Register took a trip over and got some pictures of it, and you can see the whole amazing thing in their photo slideshow.Cool office decoration or the coolest office decoration? The statue was sculpted by the Weta Workshop in Australia, and shipped all the way into Irvine. No easy task, considering it's bronzed and 12 feet tall. Though from the pictures, it looks like it was installed in two separate pieces -- the wolf mount first, and then the Orc on top. And it also looks like Blizzard had a short unveiling ceremony, but it seems like it may have been just for employees from inside the building.Bet that statue is more awesome than whatever's outside whatever building you're in right now. It's more awesome than what's outside mine, and I'm in Chicago.
Economic crisis may force CCP Games to leave Iceland
The global financial crisis is hitting many companies and individuals very hard. This is especially prevalent in Iceland, home of CCP Games -- the developers of the sci-fi massively multiplayer online game EVE Online. The collapse of Iceland's banking system and currency has been devastating to the nation. "Icelanders are reeling from the shock of having everything they knew virtually disappear overnight," Valur Gunnarsson reports from Reykjavik for The Guardian.Despite these economic woes, Hilmar V. Pétursson, the CEO of CCP Games, gave assurances all is well with the company back in October. He's stated that CCP is "well isolated" from the banking crisis, that their holdings and assets were diversified enough (due to partner relationships in different parts of the world) to stave off the ruin that many other Icelandic companies are facing. But there's a potential downside to that diversification: restrictions on access to foreign currencies have gone into effect in Iceland. Specifically -- as it relates to CCP Games -- on foreign investment coming into the country. Are these restrictions enough of a hassle that CCP Games would ever need to leave Iceland?
Explore the halls and amenities of Blizzard HQ
Blizzcon is this weekend, and journalists and bloggers the world over are descending upon California to report on everything from Diablo 3 classes to -- you guessed it -- World of Warcraft. MTV's Multiplayer blog counts itself a member of that gaming press Horde, and in addition to your usual Blizzcon coverage, it visited Blizzard's headquarters and took lots of photos.The HQ has a museum, a movie theater, a gymnasium, and a bunch of other amenities, and they're all documented in Multiplayer's gallery. The walls are covered in Warcraft and Starcraft artwork -- basically, it's just as awesome as you would expect it to be. Hit the source link to browse the gallery to your fanboy/fangirl heart's content. One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
Take a virtual tour of Infinite Loop
Join TUAW as we go on a weekend road trip to Apple's campus at 1 Infinite Loop. No, not really, but we can always take a virtual visit to Apple HQ thanks to Google Maps Street View, now that Google has finally completed their street level photography of Infinite Loop. This allows you to see the buildings in their full grandeur. Unfortunately, you cannot visit the legendary Apple Company Store. To start your virtual road trip, click here.
Blizzard HQ temporarily evacuated due to earthquake
Blizzard headquarters in Irvine, California were temporarily evacuated today when a 5.4 magnitude earthquake struck the Chino Hills area in southern California. Chino Hills is about 30 miles from Irvine.According to the information on the login screen, in-game and phone support were momentarily unavailable, however everything is now back to business as usual. No servers or other game services have been affected by the earthquake. All the technology is operating smoothly.Our own Dan O'Halloran was in private chat with us all when the earthquake struck. He reported that while it was a good shaking, it was "nothing to go home about." Perhaps if we're lucky the earthquake shook a few more Beta keys out of Blizzard. We can only hope.Take a look after the break for the full in-game news released by Blizzard.
