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WB Games San Francisco opens this year, will focus on F2P, mobile games
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment is opening a new studio in San Francisco some time this year, a studio which is unsurprisingly called WB Games San Francisco. WB Games San Francisco will be responsible for "developing and publishing high-quality, free-to-play, mobile, social and browser-based games."Greg Ballard – who was appointed to senior VP of digital games in 2010 – will be studio head honcho. "San Francisco is a hotbed of local talent and convenient access to major partners, and this will help us achieve our goal to bring our top entertainment and gaming brands, as well as original IP, to multiple mobile, social and emerging platforms," Ballard said. In addition to development, WB Games San Francisco will also oversee publishing duties for all mobile games developed by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
Warner Bros. appoints Greg Ballard senior VP of 'Digital Games'
Warner Bros. has tapped former Glu Mobile president and CEO Greg Ballard to serve as its senior vice president of Digital Games. He will serve under Warner Bros. Digital Distribution and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, reporting to both division presidents. Ballard will be in charge of the company's broad digital distribution business as it pertains to PC, console, handheld and mobile games; online titles, including social games, owned and operated MMOs and "light persistent worlds"; and TV-delivered and on-demand streaming games. That leaves a lot to consider, but we'd be satisfied just to get a lot more Batman DLC for the next one. Make it happen, Ballard. Additionally, the new vee-pee will oversee Turbine, creator of The Lord of the Rings Online, and has been tasked with recruiting a new GM for the studio. Most recently, Ballard could be found in the cushy CEO chair of Transpera, a mobile video ad network. He's also held executive positions at Capcom and the now defunct Digital Pictures, developer of the famously "controversial" early '90s FMV classic, Night Trap. You know, the genre is making a comeback with iPhone ports ... Make it happen, Ballard.
Glu Mobile CEO steps down citing need for 'generating positive cash'
There's no doubt that Apple's iPhone has put a significant dent into the mobile game landscape, especially for non-future phone game developers and publishers. Such is the case for Glu Mobile, a company that -- while recently inking a deal to develop and distribute Activision titles on mobile devices -- seems to be going through some not so fantastic times. IndustryGamers.com reports that the company's CEO, Greg Ballard, is stepping down after six years on the job, citing the need to generate "positive cash.""This is a good time to bring in new leadership for the company, as we focus on returning to generating positive cash and begin even greater investment in next-generation mobile platforms," Ballard notes in the company's release. It's not clear at this time who will be taking the reins of the mobile developer, but we're hoping it's not these guys. [Image]
