GameSpot

A report last year from market-research firm Parks Associates predicted that in-game advertising would leap from $55 million in 2006 to $800 million by 2012.

From the article "Execs question in-game advertising," by Emma Boyes.

Companies are spending more and more on game-related advertising, and a new report from market research firm Parks Associates suggests explosive growth in the field over the next six years. According to the firm's latest report, "Electronic Gaming in the Digital Home: Game Advertising," companies will increase their collective game advertising spending from $370 million last year to more than $2 billion in 2012.

Speaking with GameSpot, Parks Associates director of broadband ...read more

If your home doesn't already have some sort of network of high-tech gadgets, there's a good chance it will in four years. At least that's the prediction of Parks Associates, a firm that studies the market of digital technology. A report last month from the analyst group pegged 2010 as the time when about 30 million homes in the United States will run connected entertainment networks.

"Consoles thrive on ease of use," Parks Associates analyst Michael Cai told GameSpot. "The p ...read more

But what's worked for Namco hasn't necessarily been good for other publishers, or the industry in general, according to Parks Associates analyst Michael Cai.

"I think focusing on chasing franchise and porting popular console titles might be the biggest mistake some companies are making," Cai said. "Due to the limitations of the mobile platform, many games are not yet suitable for mobile play."

One publisher that Cai thinks is handling the transition to mobile properly is ...read more

Michael Cai, a senior analyst with the industry research firm Parks Associates, similarly believes the era of digital distribution isn't quite nigh, at least not for core gamers.

"The conflict between the publisher, the developer, and the retail channel is going to be a major inhibitor for releasing new games through digital distribution going forward in the near-term," Cai said. "I think [digital distribution of games] is going to be here to stay, but how long it takes to r ...read more

One technology analyst says interest in games-on-demand is slated to spike--with more ISPs and publishers readying new offers.

As a recently published Parks Associates report suggests, availability, the games-on-demand target audience, and the quality of games being offered is set to change. “Although most games-on-demand services offer small-footprint Internet games and back-catalog retail PC games, the quantity and quality of these games are improving,” said Michael Cai, a ...read more