Seattle-based RealNetworks is introducing games for the iPhone and other mobile devices, according to a report in VentureBeat today. Six games are coming out on the iPhone this quarter, including Tiki Towers, a survival-adventure game released last week on some mobile phones. It will be out on the iPhone and iPod Touch on December 15, and will be available for download on WiiWare on December 22.
The push into mobile is an indication that casual games—those that are cheaper and less time-consuming than traditional console games—are becoming a crucial part of RealNetworks’ business. The company first got into games for PCs in 2001, and acquired local game developer Game House in 2003. The next frontier for Real looks to be the mobile market.
Last week, RealNetworks (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RNWK]]) laid off 130 employees worldwide, 39 in Seattle. In the third quarter, company revenues were up 5 percent (to $152 million) over the same period last year, with game revenues up 19 percent to $34.2 million. But RealNetworks reported a loss of $4.5 million, as compared to a profit of $4.3 million in the third quarter of 2007.
Author: Gregory T. Huang
Greg is a veteran journalist who has covered a wide range of science, technology, and business. As former editor in chief, he overaw daily news, features, and events across Xconomy's national network. Before joining Xconomy, he was a features editor at New Scientist magazine, where he edited and wrote articles on physics, technology, and neuroscience. Previously he was senior writer at Technology Review, where he reported on emerging technologies, R&D, and advances in computing, robotics, and applied physics. His writing has also appeared in Wired, Nature, and The Atlantic Monthly’s website. He was named a New York Times professional fellow in 2003.
Greg is the co-author of Guanxi (Simon & Schuster, 2006), about Microsoft in China and the global competition for talent and technology. Before becoming a journalist, he did research at MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Lab. He has published 20 papers in scientific journals and conferences and spoken on innovation at Adobe, Amazon, eBay, Google, HP, Microsoft, Yahoo, and other organizations. He has a Master’s and Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT, and a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
View all posts by Gregory T. Huang