catfight
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Samsung crashes iPhone 4S block party, lures Aussies with $2 Galaxy S IIs
Can't say we didn't see this catfight coming after Apple boldly rejected Samsung's settlement offer in Australia, but man, the latter certainly isn't afraid of striking back in its enemy's front yard. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Sammy's set up a pop-up store merely meters away from Apple's Sydney store, all for just stealing the thunder from the iPhone 4S launch this Friday. The campaign? For the first ten customers each day up to Friday, the Korean giant's offering its Galaxy S II for just $2 sans contract -- no wonder the line's already longer than Apple's, according to the Herald. But of course, Samsung's also effectively funding some of these folks for their iPhone 4S from next door, so it's pretty much a win-win situation for both companies. See? There's always a happy ending, and let's hope that the upcoming Nexus Prime won't add fuel to the ongoing patent dispute. [Thanks, Kevin]
Sony's Rob Dyer criticizes Microsoft's content policies
"Publishers are getting the living crap kicked out of them by Microsoft," Rob Dyer, Sony's SVP of public relations, told Industry Gamers in a recent interview concerning Microsoft's publishing policies. But we're getting ahead of ourselves here -- Dyer was provoked by the following information from Microsoft's Content Submission and Release Policy, which forbids its games from being released first or with exclusive content on other platforms: "Titles for Xbox 360 must ship at least simultaneously with other video game platform, and must have at least feature and content parity on-disc with the other video game platform versions in all regions where the title is available. If these conditions are not met, Microsoft reserves the right to not allow the content to be released on Xbox 360." Xbox Europe's Chris Lewis defended this policy to Eurogamer, saying, "We're a little biased, so obviously we're going to look to protect our own space as best we can and get exclusivity." And that's where Dyer steps in. "I think what Chris and the other representatives at Microsoft are doing is protecting an inferior technology," Dyer said. "I think they want to dumb it down and keep it as pedestrian as possible so that if you want to do anything for Blu-ray or you have extra content above 9 gigs or you want to do anything of that nature, you'd better sure as heck remember that Microsoft can't handle that." While Microsoft tries to force path-dependence on its publishers, Sony's more open policy has earned it a relationship with Valve, which Dyer says is a stark advantage for the company and gamers alike. Microsoft has a relationship with Valve too, but it seems like more of a long-distance, second-cousin-once-removed sort of deal.
EA and Activision's cat fight gets seriously insulting
EA and Activision have been circling each other like feral cats since EA CEO John Riccitiello said he wanted to see Call of Duty "rot from the core" in June. Activision's Eric Hirshberg responded at Gamescom with no response, saying competition is healthy and mudslinging rhetoric is "bad for the industry." EA's corporate spokesman Jeff Brown agrees with Hirshberg by disagreeing, as he had this to say in response: "Welcome to the big leagues Eric -- I know you're new in the job but someone should have told you this is an competitive industry. "You've got every reason to be nervous. Last year Activision had a 90 share in the shooter category. This year, Battlefield 3 is going to take you down to 60 or 70. At that rate, you'll be out of the category in 2-3 years. If you don't believe me, go to the store and try to buy a copy of Guitar Hero or Tony Hawk." Me-ow. With comments like that, we can't help but think this could all be a marketing ploy inspired by The Real Housewives of New Jersey. We'll know when Hirshberg responds by putting on a cocktail dress and flipping a table in a fancy restaurant.
