Trouble in the gaming industry, some interesting demographics, cool cleantech! Let's get to the job news for fans, geeks, and otaku!
Branding:
Seth Godin is at it again, noting Brands Can Be Mythology in a brilliant insight. Read and contemplate.
Demographics:
Where foreigners are buying US property, which may give you clues to areas where foreign and multinational business may be going – and where stuff is just cheap. I didn't know Florida was number one. Might give some people pause (and wonder how this will change and what is being bought)
Economics:
Housing still isn't promising. The author notes that housing usually helps a recovery – but with the huge shadow inventory it's not happening. That's another blow against the economy, and another reason housing prices aren't recovering for a long time – to ever.
Is the double-dip recession just a scare? Well one expert that has the ear of Naked Capitalism thinks, so, but he seems more pessimistic as of late. Still he did call the summer slowdown.
Anyone seen Nouriel Robuni lately . . .
We may have a man-made debt ceiling crisis in the US, but at least it has a rap song. Yes, of this posting, no resolution.
Green Tech:
Enerkem raises $30 million for their trash-to-fuel business, and they have a LOT more money and loans lined up. They're in Canada and the US. It may not sound glamorous, but these people sound business savvy, have TWO governments to work with, and are raising loads of cash. People, if you're a biotech, tech-head, or green enthusiast, they need your resume.
Publishing:
Thanks to e-books, publishers move paperbacks into production earlier. Looks like the cycle of hardcover-to-paperback is accelerated, perhaps by 50%. At some point this suggests it'll all come out at the same time – and that means hardcover/paperback is going to have only one winner. I'm wondering if the hardcover is going to be the looser here.
Remakes:
Remakes enough to make you scream? Tales from the Crypt may be back – but as a continuing series not an anthology. No I don't quite get it either, it sounds like a branding effort more than anything else.
Technology:
Asus is doing an ultrathin netbook and boy do I get MacBook Air vibes. It's running an OS more meant for mobile (MeeGo). Curious device, but it tells me everyone things ultrathin is the big thing for netbook/latops/anything not a desktop or tablet.
Video Games:
The DS price gets slashed to $169.99. It hasn't been selling to well, so I'm not surprised, but also it's a peculiarly tame act. I think Nintendo is fully investing in the Wii U next – and we still don't know where the DS is going to end up (so if you develop DS and Wii titles, really stay alert).
In fact, Nintendo is doing worse than many thought. I'm still bullish on their plans, but not so sure about opportunities in the short-term.
Sony's gaming business revenue drops, with PS3's declining sales as part of it. Probably a note of caution for potential job opportunities.
(Also note the above two companies had headquarters in a country hit by a massive quake, which doesn't help.)
For your information: Big Fish brings out a hidden-object game onKindle. Yes, Kindle has games (the Scrabble one outsold all e-books in fact). It's a curiosity, mostly, but it may mean Big Fish has further interactions with Amazon that could be profitable.
The Red Faction franchise is dead, so if you were one of the five people who dreamed of working on it, it probably isn't going to happen.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: How is the publishing cycle of hardcover-paperback-ebook going to come out in the future?