MacNewsWorld

"My sense is that consumers have been very happy with the pricing model Amazon has established," Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst with Parks Associates, told MacNewsWorld.

"It's very easy to compare an Amazon digital title with hardback or paperback, and I think that's part of the reason why Amazon has had the success it has had," he added.

From the article, "Amazon Wrangles Publishers as iBookstore Grand Opening Looms" by Katherine Noyes

Mac owners who are gamers tend to play on a console rather than on their computers, largely because offerings for the Mac have been few and far between. Online game distributor Valve intends to change that with the release of Steamworks for the Mac. "It will create a market for games for the Mac, where there wasn't a significant one before," said Parks Associates analyst Pietro Macchiarella.

However, the boost will be mainly psychological, at least in the short term, he said ...read more

"One of the things I struggle with is the use of the tablet," Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst with Parks Associates, told MacNewsWorld.

It is "well defined that tablets work well in vertical markets like hospitals and warehouses," Scherf noted, "but for consumers, my question is, what are they bringing to the table that notebooks or netbooks can't do?"

Nevertheless, "it seems like a lot of what Apple is doing is pushing the iPhone as a be-all device," S ...read more

That Windows ante to use the new MediaSmart servers won't hurt HP in the demand department, according to Kurt Scherf, vice president and principle analyst at Parks Associates in Dallas, Texas. Citing findings from Parks research of the home market, he told MacNewsWorld, "Demand for enhancements and storage is pretty low among the pure Mac households."

"About 10 percent of all broadband households have at least one Mac and one PC in the home," he continued. "and when you look ...read more

"Gaming has been a remarkably resilient category despite the downturn," Kurt Scherf, VP and principal analyst at Parks Associates, told MacNewsWorld. "If I were Apple, my thoughts would definitely be turning to grabbing a larger piece of low-hanging revenue in this area."

Still, it is difficult to guess how Apple wants to proceed, based on Teversham's move alone, said Scherf.

The iPhone has thousands of gaming apps, he noted. Indeed, Apple "has transformed the way the ga ...read more

Apple has its retail stores, of course, and the company did not respond to inquiries from MacNewsWorld at press time. Still, might Apple attend CES?

It's unlikely that Apple would attend CES, agreed Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst at Parks Associates . "I think Apple has gotten so used to building an aura of exclusivity, I just don't see them breaking that at this point," Scherf told MacNewsWorld.

"And their model is so different -- it's so much based o ...read more

Others announced online virtual worlds and games tied to make-believe dinosaurs, the TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and the Disney film "Cars."

In the future, there may be little difference between virtual worlds, video games and social networks, predicted Michael Cai, an analyst with Parks Associates in Dallas.

"We're obviously seeing a lot of convergence of them all already," he said.

From the article, "Virtual Worlds: Big Business for Kids' Games" by Bob Keefe ...read more

""This is an idea that has been kicked around for a while," John Barrett, director of research with Parks Associates , told MacNewsWorld.

In general, many more people have the ability to watch video on mobile devices than actually use it, Barrett noted, and "part of reason is the content that's available." It's a "tough sell" convincing people to buy an iTunes version of a movie rather than get the DVD and be able to watch it on their TV at home. "People are afraid of being ...read more