TECHNOLOGIES,BUSINESS
The Sandbox | August 10, 2022
Following a round of seed investments by The Sandbox, Com2uS, CRIT Ventures, and Formless Capital, Firefly Games CEO Michael Zhang has announced the formation of a new venture called MetaWorld Entertainment. Key partners in this new metaverse company include The Sandbox, the leading decentralized virtual gaming world and subsidiary of Animoca Brands, and Com2uS, a global multi-content platform leading the way in the blockchain gaming spaceThis announcement of MetaWorld Entertainment's formation comes at a pivotal time in the evolution of the Web3 space. Michael Zhang has described MetaWorld’s vision of Web3 as “the venue for entertainment in the new digital age. The metaverse is where audiences will play, engage, and interact with new levels of immersion, unlike anything we have seen before. Michael, who will serve MetaWorld as its CEO said, “We have the advantage of leveraging great technology and our know-how of creating engaging and meaningful experiences for people. This allows us to think more from the user’s perspective: what meaningful experiences can we bring to them and what value will this give them.
MetaWorld Entertainment will be an all-encompassing entertainment company, bringing concerts, events, and games to the global market through metaverse platforms, including The Sandbox. MetaWorld will serve as both a developer and publisher of multiple experiences and games, empowering audiences around the world to interact with the metaverse like never before. MetaWorld will maximize the immersive experience using the support of key partners such as Agora and their real-time audio technology. MetaWorld will also utilize the Web2 game publishing experience of its partners to target a massive gaming audience while using the "play-and-earn" model that offers high-quality and engaging games through which players can also earn virtual currencies. By combining and utilizing its unique gaming resources, platform advantages, and business cooperation in technology and entertainment, MetaWorld plans to bring brand-new play-and-earn entertainment experiences to the Web3 era to drive broader adoption.
“The Sandbox is pleased to support the entry of veteran gaming entrepreneur Michael Zhang into the metaverse by establishing his next gaming venture as a metaverse builder studio, We believe he will leverage his experience and team creativity to build fun, engaging, multiplayer games and diversified experiences on The Sandbox platform, starting with Atari games available in Alpha Season 3 and with more brand names soon to be announced.”
-Sébastien BORGET, COO and Co-Founder of The Sandbox.
Com2uS President Kyu Lee was similarly optimistic, “The next wave of Web3 builders will be more focused on the content and experience that are built on the platforms. Michael and his team have both the strong vision and the track record of working with top tier brands to scale and deliver.” Com2uS has a long history of bullish growth in bleeding edge markets around the world.
"Brands are looking for impactful ways to participate in the Web3 ecosystem," said Scott Levy, MetaWorld Advisor and former Managing Director of NBA Asia. "Michael has a proven track record of creating successful content and MetaWorld will become a resource for brands and consumers to meaningfully engage in the metaverse."
MetaWorld Entertainment
MetaWorld Entertainment, a revolutionary Web3 company to create unique experiences that allows users to engage with Web3 in a completely new and immersive way while enabling the world to connect through entertainment.
About The Sandbox
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is one of the decentralized virtual worlds that have been fueling the recent growth of virtual real estate demand, having partnered with major IPs and brands including Warner Music Group, Ubisoft, The Rabbids, Gucci Vault, The Walking Dead, Snoop Dogg, Adidas, Deadmau5, Steve Aoki, Richie Hawtin, The Smurfs, Care Bears, Atari, ZEPETO, CryptoKitties, and more. Building on existing The Sandbox IP that has more than 40 million global installs on mobile, The Sandbox metaverse offers players and creators a decentralized and intuitive platform to create immersive 3D worlds and game experiences and to safely store, trade, and monetize their creations.
About Com2uS
Com2uS is a South Korean mobile and online game development and publishing company established in 1998. Com2uS develops games for Android, iOS, and other platforms, and has been targeting the global market for almost 10 years, even before the introduction of smartphones. Based on their vast pool of know-how gained from their establishment of foreign offices and experience in the NA and EU markets, Com2uS has become a very competitive company. The company's corporate offices are located in the United States, Korea, Japan, and China. In 2007, Com2uS was listed on the Korea Stock Exchange (KOSDAQ: 078340).
About Firefly Games
Firefly Games excels in development, globalization, and localization for mobile games, with rich experience in game production and distribution. Firefly has cooperated with Hollywood studios to develop many mobile games based on popular IP, including DreamWorks' Universe of Legends, Skydance's Terminator: Dark Fate, and MGA Entertainment's match-three mobile game LoL Surprise! Room Maker, among others. Firefly also represents the North American distribution of Asian mobile games such as My Name is MT2.
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TECHNOLOGIES,MEDIA AND BROADCASTING
FOX First Run | August 05, 2022
FOX First Run announced that it is broadening its partnership with media technology provider ACTV8me, to create a unified interactive experience across its all-star lineup "You Bet Your Life" and "Pictionary."
The leading mobile ad-tech company will leverage its Sequential QR Code™ (SQR Code™) solution in all 180 new episodes of "You Bet Your Life" and 175 original episodes of "Pictionary," producing a measurable way for sponsors to connect with the audience, while surprising and delighting viewers in real-time at home.
Across America's favorite game shows, ACTV8me will display its SQR Code™ to empower marketers to sequentially or randomly serve unique offers, messaging, and enhanced content in a brand-safe environment, all of which can be saved into the native wallet (Apple Pay or Google Pay). This proven solution allows sponsors to effectively measure lead generation and conversions. The SQR Code™ will also power an at-home segment, prompting viewers to play along with an audience question, to win sponsored grand prizes, delivering fun to the whole family.
"After a successful collaboration on Season 1 of 'You Bet Your Life', we are proud of our partnership with ACTV8me in scaling across multiple series, as we continue to accelerate the reach of these syndicated shows by infusing interactive elements that improve our audience experience,"
-Stephen Brown, EVP of Programming and Development, FOX First Run.
We are excited to serve more viewers, and optimize cross-screen experiences for premier sponsors and prizing partners," added David Schreff, CEO of ACTV8me. "As we further expand into 'Pictionary' with Jerry O'Connell, we are jointly ushering in a new way for consumers to engage with the iconic board game as it comes to life on the television screen.
These FOX First Run's syndicated game shows provide a perfect match for us to inspire full family participation, and enhance the in-show sponsorships together,expressed Brian Shuster, Founder and Chief Innovation Officer of ACTV8me. "By displaying our SQR Code™ solution at pivotal moments, FOX First Run is designing opportunities for viewers to test their knowledge and be rewarded this fall.
Tune in this September as "You Bet Your Life" and "Pictionary" premiere on weekdays and weeknights in 192 markets in 98% of the U.S. including FOX Owned & Operated Television stations and on station groups Sinclair, Nexstar, Scripps, Tegna, Meredith, Gray, and others. Check your local listings, or visit https://youbetyourlife.com / and Pictionaryontv.com
About FOX FIRST RUN
FOX First Run serves as the television syndication arm of FOX Broadcasting Company. FOX Television Stations owns and operates 29 full power broadcast television stations in the U.S. These include stations located in nine of the top ten largest designated market areas, or DMAs, and duopolies in 11 DMAs, including the three largest DMAs (New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago). Of these stations, 18 are affiliated with the FOX Network. In addition to distributing sports, entertainment and syndicated content, our television stations collectively produce nearly 1,000 hours of local news every week. These stations leverage viewer, distributor, and advertiser demand for the FOX Network's national content.
About ACTV8me ( www.actv8me.com )
ACTV8me's patented and proprietary media technology enables measurable engagement and attribution across all distributed content. The platform powers an interactive and transactional overlay that linear and streaming media networks, retailers, sports and entertainment venues, digital out-of-home publishers, and brand advertisers leverage across content and ad campaigns, connecting marketing spend to measurable sales outcomes. ACTV8me partners provide consumers with new valuable offers, digital coupons, and unique content, based on their age, gender, location and media consumption behavior, enabling global brands to drive measurable ROI. As a leader in interactive media experiences, including the new breakthrough SQR™ Code (Sequential QR Code), ACTV8me also partners with major television production and content owners to create original content that utilizes the platform's functionality, to unlock new recurring revenue streams.
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SOLUTIONS,BUSINESS
CommScope | August 03, 2022
CommScope (NASDAQ: COMM) announced it has been selected by Spurs Sports & Entertainment (SS&E) as the provider for its next generation mobile connectivity transformation at AT&T Center, home of the San Antonio Spurs. CommScope’s in-building wireless solutions will deliver dedicated 4G, 5G, and private wireless network access. These solutions will allow fans and concert goers to enjoy an immersive experience while providing operational efficiency for the venue and vendors.With CommScope’s ERA® All-Digital DAS, the AT&T Center will increase its mobile broadband wireless capacity to provide an augmented fan experience utilizing ultra-wideband 5G. This enables fans to enjoy frictionless event-day conveniences such as immersive content, paperless entry, cashless payments, and in-seat ordering with their smartphones. They will also experience low latency interaction when they engage with experiences through the recently launched official Spurs Mobile App.
“All these capabilities require venues to provide fast and reliable wireless networks. CommScope is honored to provide our premier ERA DAS platform and CBRS solutions for the Spurs to enable these innovative offerings for their fans at AT&T Center,”
-Darla Braun, SVP Sales and Business Development, CommScope.
In addition to being selected as the in-building cellular platform for fan facing mobile broadband, SS&E selected CommScope CBRS to provide the AT&T Center with its first private wireless network, dedicated to operations and enhanced security around the arena. This purpose-built private network can easily address a wide range of business-critical operational needs and allows for the addition of digital elements such as smart parking, analytics, security, and crowd management without stressing existing networks.
“We are thrilled to have CommScope equip AT&T Center with a high speed and reliable network solution that allows us to realize cost savings while providing an enhanced fan experience,”
-Joe Loomis, VP of Finance and Technology, Spurs Sports & Entertainment.
CommScope’s ERA increases efficiency by reducing head-end space by as much as 80% over a traditional analog system, all while minimizing network complexity and costs. Not only will AT&T Center be equipped to maximize the “fan experience,” but it will also capitalize environmentally on power, space and cooling savings. ERA DAS provides the arena with the network architecture necessary to deliver a high-speed and seamless experience from beginning to end, while also being flexible enough to adapt to future needs. CommScope’s CBRS portfolio enables organizations to leverage a high capacity and highly secure mission-critical network that is easily deployed and cloud managed.
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About CommScope:
CommScope (NASDAQ: COMM) is pushing the boundaries of technology to create the world’s most advanced wired and wireless networks. Our global team of employees, innovators and technologists empower customers to anticipate what’s next and invent what’s possible. Discover more at www.commscope.com.
About Spurs Sports & Entertainment:
Spurs Sports & Entertainment (SS&E) is a value-based and community-centric sports and entertainment company that provides premier live and global digital experiences for fans across a portfolio of three teams and two venues – all supported by a passionate staff of more than 1,000 full and part-time employees. SS&E owns and operates the San Antonio Spurs (NBA), Austin Spurs (NBA G League), and San Antonio FC (USL), as well as manages the day-to-day operations of the AT&T Center, Toyota Field and STAR Complex. The SS&E investor group is led by Managing Partner Peter J. Holt. For more information about SS&E, please visit https://www.attcenter.com/connect/sse.
About the San Antonio Spurs:
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league’s Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home games at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, TX. For more information about the San Antonio Spurs, please visit https://www.nba.com/spurs/.
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