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Nintendo still is a leader in the games console industry. Now it is the turn for portable devices  with 3D screens that do not require the use of glasses. One big question is whether this innovation will be disruptive or not, since 3D screens and games are "modules" that are likely to be available to all competitors.

The user interface for games consoles has dramatically changed since the Nintendo Wii. Now, in order to be in the game, console makers had to provide motion detection technology. Looking at Microsoft, will this R&D race pay off, maybe in terms of spillovers to other business lines, or only lead to defocusing?

Cloud computing is quickly becoming the dominant design for IT systems and could do the same to games consoles. This is quite striking, given that the trajectory followed by Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft has up to now been the opposite, with huge computing power distributed in users' living rooms, instead of concentrating it in providers' data centers

3D visualization is probably going to become a disruptive innovation over the next few years. This is true for movies and TV sets, but also for gaming on both TV-based and hanheld devices. As usual, the question is whether the disruption will be at the level of device makers or for manufacturers of the component (i.e. screen).

Backing away from a previous position, are we Nintendo? Just a month after Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime claimed that the iPhone OS (you know, that operating system used on the iPod touch, iPhone family and the iPad) wasn't a "viable profit platform for game development," along comes the company's president to say that, in fact, Apple is the primary "enemy of the future." That's according to Times Online, who says that the Big N's CEO (Satoru Iwata) feels that the battle with Sony is a "victory already won," and who clearly believes that the next wave of gaming won't be of the traditional sit-on-your-coach-and-slam-buttons variety. 'Course, the PSP never has been able to hang with the DS family, but even the Wii has a ways to go before it catches the mighty PlayStation 2 in terms of global sales. Going forward, the company is purportedly looking to revive the element of "surprise" in Nintendo products, but it might be best served by simply catching up to the competition and supporting this wild concept known as "HD gaming" over "HDMI."

An interesting article on the battle being fought by Apple and Google, arguably the companies that are more likely (maybe with Facebook) to shape the future of IT and media. The article shows the two competing visions and philosophies, with Google focused on information management and Apple on user experience. Not by chance, the once dominant Microsoft is not even taking part in this game.

More than 120 million people play Zynga's online games. Revenue mostly comes from selling virtual hoes and machine guns and such to players of FarmVille, Mafia Wars, and other titles. Zynga's success depends on the good graces of Facebook, where almost all of its games are played. Facebook doesn't just get happier users, it also gets big checks from Zynga. Facebook is testing a service called Facebook Credits that would offer a single virtual currency for use on many different apps. If the social network forces app makers to use Facebook Credits, as some developers expect will happen this year, Zynga would have to pay the company up to 30% of every transaction. "Zynga is riding high," says Barry Cottle, general manager of EA's interactive unit. "But they may soon find out that the next three years are a hell of a lot harder than the last three."

Since decades, diffusion of operating systems depends on the avilability of the complementary asset called "applications", and allowing independent developers to work on them can help a lot. Now Samsung is realizing they are late to the game and are going to open up their OS. However, they might still have a chance because they are competing on the still uncrowded low-end segment.

Augmented reality in 2010 is a typical technology in the "incubation" phase. The technology is there, the basic building blocks (e.g. GPS-enabled smartphones cum camera) are already widely diffused... but it is now necessary to find a real application that people will be willing to pay for.

It seems that someone around the world has come up with some interesting applications in the field of gaming! Check out these links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZvxIjdyyII, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lHOHYhp6b4. Simply …uaohhh!

New-product development challenges are especially acute in the communications industry. Companies in this sector are struggling to cope with falling margins from traditional products, rising consumer expectations and a marketplace in which they are increasingly competing head-to-head with high-tech, software and content players much more highly skilled at the product development game.