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Verizon iPhone Could Double US Mobile Games Biz
donniebaseball23 writes "Earlier today, Verizon and Apple finally confirmed what everyone knew was coming: iPhone will soon launch on the Verizon network. The hugely popular iPhone has been a hit with gamers and game developers on the App Store, and by bringing the phone to the largest carrier in the US, the installed base suddenly could get much larger. The folks at social gaming network OpenFeint believe the Verizon iPhone impact could be immediately felt this year. 'The iPhone coming to Verizon is a highly anticipated event by the mobile gaming community,' said Peter Relan, chairman of OpenFeint. 'Adding 13 million more potential gamers on the iPhone is going to be a watershed moment for mobile gaming. I wouldn't be surprised if the US mobile gaming industry doubles in revenue this year because of this deal.'"
While I'm sure it will sell like gangbusters on Verizon, the AT&T exclusivity of the iPhone allowed the Android platform to flourish on the nation's largest wireless network.
Apple is now releasing a seven month old single-core phone against a deluge of versatile dual-core Tegra 2 devices.
I find it amusing that this blurb uses the term "App Store" in a manner befitting its trademarked status, given the immediately previous story.
...or then again it could just flop. News at 6.
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
Heads will roll.
I, for one, object to labeling people who play a lot of Angry Birds on the toilet as gamers. I'm not saying that Angry Birds wouldn't be a game but "gamer" has certain meaning and that's like saying "The Garfield comics have been a great hit with literature geeks". At least ever since Counter Strike 1.6, gamers have been a significant subculture that has been recognized as such by the mainstream. There has been made a distinction (even if the line is blurred) between "casual gamers" and "gamers" but people who buy a lot of game apps for their iPhone hardly even fits the "casual" category (yes, I know many of them spend dozens of hours to those games. But it's still a different group of people / different concept).
That anybody was waiting for Verizon? Almost nobody holds back on something they want for 3 years because of something as insubstantial as a moderate and geographically varied difference in network quality. Maybe the install base will increase, but double? Hah!
Here in The Netherlands, we had T-Mobile as the sole distributor of the iPhone. Since one or two months, the other carriers offer the iPhone as well. Problem is, they don't always specify what works and what doesn't. For example Vodafone doesn't offer Visual Voicemail. I think this is a very nice feature and if it's missing, this should be well-noted. Other carriers offer them with a very tight data limit, which makes watching Youtube and the evening news, or using Spotify, uninteresting.
So I applaud the fact that this freaking phone is available but I'd suggest other slashdotters that they are careful and look at the whole package. And there's something else as well: there's a new iPhone expected around June. Wait a little bit for a discount, or get the latest model.
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So I see the headline proclaiming that the mobile games business could "double".
I see a quote about adding 13 million potential new gamers.
Even if we ignore the fact that some if not a majority of VZ iPhone users will simply be former AT&T iPhone users, thus causing no change at all in the size of the gaming market.. Apple moved 10 million phones in Q4 2010 alone. The installed base is pushing 100 million devices. I guess we are also supposed to forget about the even larger number of Android devices out there, and the even larger number of new Android devices being sold each quarter when we think about the mobile gaming market.. but still how exactly does 13 million new users double anything?
-Lod
The iPhone has been available across numerous phone service providers for years now. Android is still doing very, very well...
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Recall when the iPhone was first released. A lot of people switched over to AT&T for that phone. But the iPhone isn't new any longer and many people found a more than adequate replacement in Android.
Frankly, this new iPhone vendor is just too late to the game for it to make a huge difference.
Will there be some increase? I'm sure of it. But nothing that would approach "double." Double would be wild speculation even if there were only two carriers!
No, what's happening is that the US cellular market is catching up with the rest of the world, where we've had the iPhone on multiple carriers for a long time.
It was only the backwards, stone-age US cellular market that was "special" with the exclusivity of AT&T. Sure the other markets also launched with exclusive deals (O2 in the UK, for example) but these ended quickly and opened up the market, offering the choice of an iPhone if you wanted on, on your carrier of choice - just like Android handsets.
iphone 4 on release next month. VZ is rolling out LTE this year, and the iphone 4 is not compatiable. VZ just eliminated its early upgrade program, so anyone who signs up now will have to wait at least 20 months before getting a new phone. Considering the iphone's are normally refreshed in June/July, why not wait a few months to at least see what the next version of the iphone will bring. Its possible only the GSM iphone will be refreshed this summer and the CDMA one will be refreshed later, but isn't it worth waiting a few months to find out?
Jeez, is every android lover just plain stupid or do they have their head stuck in the sand. I know you'll never admit this, but get ready for a wake up call. Android sales will slow a LOT on Verizon and Apple will probably catch up or overtake them. Look at AT&T for an example. iPhone buries their Android phone subscribers by a factor of 10 or more. You're going through life with blinders on if you think the iPhone is on the decline. The rest of your post is just utter stupidity. Apple led the current smartphone market explosion, Google copied and followed. Apple led the current tablet explosion, Google is busy copying and following in Apple's footsteps. Sorry, but Google has blatantly ripped off Apple's ideas for the past several years. Which is good for Google, otherwise their offerings would not exist in those markets, or they would be half back perpetual betas like most of their products.
Apple is expanding to more networks because it apparently is out from under the AT&T exclusivity period. In other countries where Apple has gone multi-carrier - their market share has expanded. It will expand here as well. Most of the switchers on verizon will come from windows mobile, palm and blackberry since android users are still locked into their 2 year contracts. I do expect a lot of users with wait for the next model in the June/July time frame.
You would think that is logical but a lot of people don't care; they just want an iPhone now on Verizon/Sprint/T-mobile. I've been reading that online for the past 3 years. Most people do not think about or not aware of upgrade cycles and the rest. Most don't care about LTE either.
If you're near the northern border, purchase an unlocked GSM phone from a Canadian Apple store and bring it back. Just make sure your carrier sells stand-alone microSIMs.
This may have already been noted before but I couldn't find it - Verizon users that may have wanted an iPhone may already have an Android phone, so it will be some time before they have the option to switch to an iPhone. I would be surprised if there were 13 million Verizon subscribers eager to have a smart phone who have waited several years without getting an Android phone instead.
I love you Apple people. You're so easy. Of course iPhone outnumbers Android on AT&T! If you want an iPhone, you HAVE to choose AT&T. If you want an Android, you have choice. And who would choose AT&T?
As mentioned before, in most other markets iPhones aren't exclusive to any one carrier, though maybe not as prolific as Androids. But guess what? Android still outsells your precious shiny gewgaw. Turns out that more people can recognise it for what it is than might be expected.
Look at AT&T for an example. iPhone buries their Android phone subscribers by a factor of 10 or more.
Sure, but that's because of exclusivity: if you want an iPhone, you have to be an AT&T subscriber. If you aren't committed to an iPhone, then while the specific names may be different for different networks, you can go with whatever cellular network you prefer -- and AT&T hasn't promoted their non-iOS smartphones the way other carriers (particularly Verizon) have. So, yeah, iPhone is dominant on AT&T, but there are pretty clear reasons for that that don't apply to other carriers once AT&T isn't the exclusive carrier. Sure, you'll expect that some people who would prefer the iPhone but also have a stronger concern for Verizon's network over AT&T's, and thus who currently use a different phone on Verizon's network, would switch to the iPhone. And you'd expect people that would prefer Verizon's network but have stayed with AT&T because they have a stronger iPhone preference than their network preference to switch to Verizon from AT&T. But I think it would go farther than is rationally justified to expect that with exclusivity gone from AT&T, the iPhone will be as dominant as it currently is on AT&T on Verizon's network or, even, after a couple of years to even be as dominant on AT&T's network now that people who want an iPhone have a choice of networks.
Yeah, iPhone is totally going to flop on Verizon...
I think you need to take into account the fact that the group "Anonymous" has decided to attack Apple and spread hate towards it - including in slashdot, because of their general anti-geek/nerd and anti-little-guy/pro-take-the-easy-road-not-the-right-road stance. You wont find logic or reason when people are talking about Apple. Regardless of the fact that Apple is the reason all the Smartphones and Laptops now look the way they do, and the reason Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows System 7 look the way they do, and the reason future innovation and change will generally come from Apple.
Yeah, iPhone is totally going to flop on Verizon...
Who said anything about the iPhone flopping? Are you dense? Need help grasping analogies? There's no guarantee it's going to double games sales either though.
These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
Your explanation doesn't hold water at all. Both the iPhones and Android phones were on the same network, AT&T, and yet of those who chose the AT&T network people overwhelmingly chose the iPhone.
I love how Android users try to take some intellectual snob approach and yet can't see their hand in front of their face some times. Call it a shiny toy all you want, but my example stands unchallenged by you or the anonymous coward before you. I certainly don't have a problem with Android phones, but it seems some of its devotes have their heads buried in the sand.
didnt i say to sell more phones yes i did. i beleve you on the windows mobile and blackberry but andoride users will not switch to ios. andoride is awesome beats a iphone anyday.
well of course people choose iphone at@t that was there only choice unless they got a unlocked on ebay. i own both a iphone and androide device. guess witch one gets more use and has more power.
Jeez, do I have to explain this. BOTH iphones and android devices are available through AT&T. iPhone outsells Android phones by at least a factor of ten (there was a recent article on this just within the last week or so). So locked, unlocked, it makes no difference in this example. Amongst AT&T users iPhone outsells Android by a huge margin. Will that happen at Verizon, time will tell, but I think some Android fans have their head in the sand if they think the iPhone's glory days are over. Let's wait a year and see what has happened to iPhone and Android sales on Verizon. I personally believe that Android has only seen such success because it hasn't had to compete with head to head with the iPhone on that network. I think Android US Verizon sales will come to a screeching halt compared to its current pace.
I don't think Android is a bad phone, I'd place it second behind the iPhone, but I don't think it is as well thought out and refined from an average consumer perspective. Apple has done well creating an integrated ecosystem that is easy for the average Joe (or Jane) to use. I think that is why it has such widespread appeal, and surprisingly that is something that most tech nerds just can't seem to understand.
better check again andoride has surpassed iphones in sales. maybe not on at@t but everywhere else.
Better read my post again. I've only been talking about AT&T this whole time. iPhone vs. Android sales on the same network and that I believe it will turn out the similarly on Verizon after the iPhone is available there.
Yeah, iPhone is totally going to flop on Verizon...
Who said anything about the iPhone flopping? Are you dense? Need help grasping analogies? There's no guarantee it's going to double games sales either though.
Um, this was your entire post that I was replying to:
Jackass.
Your explanation doesn't hold water at all. Both the iPhones and Android phones were on the same network, AT&T, and yet of those who chose the AT&T network people overwhelmingly chose the iPhone.
You assume that people chose a network first, and then chose a phone after chosing a network. If some people chose a phone first, and/or some people chose using a combination of phone and network features, the fact that the iPhone was available only on AT&T would mean that that factor draws people who prefer to iPhone to AT&T's network, making iPhone more dominant on AT&T's network, compared to other OSs, than it would be if iPhone was available on other networks.
I love how Android users try to take some intellectual snob approach and yet can't see their hand in front of their face some times.
My wife and I each got an iPhone 3G to replace our previous Palm smartphones. We'll probably each get an iPhone 3GS in the next couple of days. Simple analysis is not an "intellectual snob approach", and I'm not a Android user.
Call it a shiny toy all you want, but my example stands unchallenged by you or the anonymous coward before you.
You example, again, is only valid in any sense if you assume that everyone is choosing a network first, and then a phone. Otherwise, the predominance of iPhone over Android among AT&T subscribers doesn't say much.
And even if you make that assumption, it doesn't say anything unless you further assume that not only does every user choose network first, but also that users who chose AT&T first are representative in their phone preferences of all users of whatever network preference.
I would submit that both assumptions are unjustified, and the first is clearly false.
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