Microsoft Says XBOX ONE 180 to Welcome INDIE Games Producers

Microsoft is to permit independent games developers to self-publish on its Xbox One games console. That’s an U-turn of its earlier policy. Indies will be capable to make their individual games. Microsoft Publish to the Xbox when they like, and set their pricing, the computer giant has confirmed.

In a huge shift, it turns out the Xbox One actually will support self-publishing, a welcome benefit to indie developers. Previously Microsoft confirmed that releasing a game on Xbox One would require a publishing partner, creating a huge fence for indies.

Facebook Shares Soar 25%, After It Posted Solid Results and Said Its Mobile Ad Buisness Lasts to Gain Traction

Facebook shares soared 25% Thursday, the morning after it posted strong results and said its mobile ad business continues to gain traction Facebook reported second-quarter revenue of $1.8 billion Wednesday, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.6 billion. Net income rose to $333 million, compared to a loss of $157 million a year ago. The stock jumped to more than $33 per share in early trading, a price not reached since January. Facebook's stock has never returned to its May 2012 IPO price of $38 per share. One big reason for the new surge: The number of people using Facebook on a mobile phones or tablets increased by 51% to 819 million, year-over-year. And the company said that mobile continues to make up a larger share of Facebook's(FB) overall advertising business. Mobile ad sales accounted for 41% of Facebook's total ad revenue. Last quarter, that share was just 30%. "When it comes to mobile, I'm very pleased with our results," said CEO Mark Zuckerberg on a conference call with investors. At the time of the IPO, analysts said the company's lack of mobile revenue was a majordownside to the stock and a reason for its sharp drop in price. Facebook said its monthly active users increased to 1.15 billion, up 21% year-over-year. Executives are expecting Facebook to continue to grow in both number of users and revenue. "I'm optimistic about growth across Asia and the rest of the world," said COO Sheryl Sandberg on the conference call. The company's recent launch of "Facebook for Every Phone" allows people in developing countries to access Facebook on their phones, even if they do not have a smartphone. There are currently 100 million people using the new app each month. "There's nothing magical about reaching a billion users," said Zuckerberg, noting that it was a great initial target, one that was surpassed in the fall of last year. "The real goal is to connect everyone in the world."

 source from - http://money.cnn.com/

Finally Microsoft Annonced The Xbox One Controller Costs $60 the Headset is $25.

Microsoft finally got down to officially telling everyone the official price of an extra Xbox One controller, and it's $59.99. The Xbox One's headset—which isn't included in the box—is $24.99.

This is important because existing Xbox 360 controllers and compatible headsets won't work with the Xbox One (Microsoft reasons that Kinect, included with every Xbox One, can already handle voice chat for you. Microsoft has also said it plans to make adapters that "allow consumers to connect many brands of wired gaming headsets to the Wireless Controller for gaming and chat audio.")

You'll get one controller in the Xbox One's box. If you want an extra recharging pack, that will run $24.99.

s0urce from -- http://kotaku.com/

Chromecast Low-Cost TV Streaming Device Launched by Google.....

 Google moved out with a new Nexus 7 tablet on Wednesday. However a much smaller and cheaper new device may be the one that makes a extremely great influence in the consumer technology world.

 Chromecast is a glorified thumb drive that enables Web streaming to television. At $35, it's also practically free, considering that it comes packed with three free months of Netflix, worthing 24 dollars. Streaming media onto the (relatively) big screen is nothing new. Set-top boxes like Roku and Boxee have provided the service, at least in part, for years. The accessory fits into a TV’s HDMI port and allows users to stream video, share tabs from the Google Chrome browser, or play music from their smartphones, tablet or computer on the big screen. But Chromecast, though, Google appears to have stripped down Web streaming to its purest elements. "It looks like they have learned from their mistakes, and radically simplified the experience," "Instead, Chromecast is pure simplicity: Search and discovery of video content is happening on the mobile device or laptop, and all Chromecast does is stream media from the cloud." Google and Apple have both tried and, at least so far, largely failed to make inroads into the living room with streaming TV products. Google TV struggled to get some major content providers to play ball. And Apple CEO Tim Cook has acknowledged that Apple TV has suffered as more of a novelty for diehard fans than a mass-market success. (A full-on Apple TV set, which has been the tech world's most-anticipated piece of supposed vaporware for the past couple of years, could of course change that).

   

Those products, along with Roku, Boxee and the like, have been, in a way, similar to traditional TV. Approved "channels," chiefly Netflix, Amazon and other Web video services, are available. But Chromecast takes streaming to a whole new level -- offering a quick, simple version of what tech-inclined folks have been able to accomplish by rigging up their laptops or desktops with their TVs. Essentially, if you can watch it on a computer, tablet or phone screen, you'll be able to watch it on your TV. That's the logical end goal of Web streaming, and many analysts are saying Google struck a huge blow by being the first to offer it up in a way that the typical consumer can understand and usage. "By coming out early at an extremely cheap price, Google may wind up dominating the TV delivery industry," Early interest in the 2-inch gadget appears to be high. Thursday afternoon, Chromecast was listed as out of stock on Amazon and Best Buy's website. The Google Play store was accepting orders, saying the device would be shipped in 3-4 weeks. While deals with the TV networks seem inevitable, Chromecast also could allow Google to make deals directly with content providers, in much the way Netflix has with original programs like Emmy-nominated "House of Cards" and a revived "Arrested Development." Web TV services like Hulu have thus far tried to limit their basic service to computer screens, offering the ability to stream to television for extra money. Now, Hulu says it's working with Google to offer an "optimized" version on Chromecast. How Chromecast will impact Google's battle with Apple remains to be seen. The existing Apple TV product, with its Airplay feature that streams from the Web, has its followers. But it only works with Apple products, naturally. Chromecast is designed to work on any platform that can run its Chrome browser. So a user could, for example, stream a YouTube video from an iPad, then watch a Netflix movie from a PC -- all streamed on a TV set through a Google device. "On paper at least, it's the best device Google has ever announced ...