Playing for profit : how digital entertainment is making big business out of child's play / Alice LaPlante, Rich Seidner.

By:

LaPlante, Alice, 1958-

Contributor(s):

Seidner, Rich

Material type: Text

0471296147
9780471296140

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

338.477 LAP

Contents:

Everything's Up for Grabs -- What's Going On? -- Why Everything's Up for Grabs -- California Dreaming -- Adapting like Crazy -- It's Hard to See What's Coming When You're Focused on the Past -- The Wild, Wild West -- Net Worth -- The Sheriff Takes a Holiday -- The Biggest Landgrab Ever -- A Different Kind of Network, A Different Kind of Person -- Let's Get Personal -- Don't Look Now -- It's All about Relationships -- Would You Watch More TV If Someone Paid You to? -- Such a Deal -- Great Service Keeps Customers Coming Back -- The Dark Side of the Force -- It's a Small World after All -- Baywatch Meets Niemann-Marcus -- Local Will Now Mean Global, and Vice Versa -- Act Globally, Think Locally -- New Tricks For Old Pets -- Stop Making Waves -- Just Imagine -- Something's Coming, Something Big -- It's Global--It's Everywhere--It Really Is a Small World, after All -- An Unlimited Smorgasbord -- Interactivity Gets Us What We Want -- It's Amazing That It Files at All -- It's All for Real -- Brave New World -- It Ain't Groovy -- Twenty Billion Records, Give or Take a Few -- The Next Big Thing -- A River Runs through It -- A River Runs over It -- Bit by Bit -- "To Every Man Is Given the Key to the Gates of Heaven. The Same Key Opens the Gates of Hell." -- Old Friends, New Enemies? -- Artists as Labels -- Everybody's Doing It -- It's Groovy That It Ain't Groovy -- An Epic Story -- Cents and Sensibility -- Tube or Not Tube -- And Something Completely Similar -- You Ain't Seen Nuthin' Yet -- It's Been a Long Time Coming.

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Status	Barcode
Standard Loan	Thurles Library Main Collection	338.477 LAP (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available	30026000004480
Standard Loan	Thurles Library Main Collection	338.477 LAP (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available	30026000004506
Standard Loan	Thurles Library Main Collection	338.477 LAP (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available	30026000004498

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A little over a century ago, an intense explosion of technical innovation transformed the way we spent our leisure time. Inventions like the phonograph, television, radio, and motion pictures sparked a revolution in entertainment that captured the hearts--and the wallets--of the average consumer. In recent years, we''ve seen some improvements on these feats: LPs disappeared and made room for CDs, movies were augmented by computer-generated special effects, and video games became a staple for home computers. But for the most part, few modifications have been made to our traditional forms of entertainment for almost 100 years. That''s about to change.

With the exciting emergence of digital interactivity, we''re about to take a huge leap forward, reshaping and reinventing virtually every form of entertainment we know. Veteran technology journalist Alice LaPlante and technology consultant Rich Seidner explain the massive changes in technology, entertainment, and culture that are forcing this latest revolution, opening up a whole new market that extends beyond electronics-savvy teenage boys. Playing for Profit examines how digital interactivity will affect the future of the technology and entertainment businesses, demanding new rules, different players, and bigger profits. It takes an insightful look into the strategies and methods that are driving the digital entertainment and interactive gaming industries, dissecting the thinking behind such issues as product innovation, market domination, risk taking, attracting and nurturing visionary employees, and unparalleled customer service.

This engaging book outlines how the entire entertainment industry will be redefined and how the current business models found in radio, recorded music, television, and computer games will be affected. The authors explain how rapid and powerful changes in technology are already shaking up the status quo: In the music business, for example, Internet-savvy musicians are becoming Web-based recording labels, and traditional recording labels are beginning to irk radio conglomerates by broadcasting over the Internet, selling directly to consumers via e-commerce. You''ll learn how the forces of evolution are creating new roles for all entertainment providers, especially the computer games industry, which is finally maturing as it reaches a new audience--girls and adult women--and makes a home in cyberspace.

This lively account of the fast-paced, high-risk world of interactive entertainment also includes:
* Candid, compelling interviews with industry insiders.
* Dramatic examples of how innovators in the entertainment business are breaking all the rules and ignoring traditional industry boundaries.
* A behind-the-scenes look at groundbreaking digital entertainment start-ups.

Playing for Profit offers valuable lessons for managers in entertainment and technology companies and will dazzle the enthusiasts who follow the successes and failures of this remarkable industry.

An inside look at how emerging digital technologies are revolutionizing the entertainment business.

"LaPlante and Seidner are master storytellers of the events of the digital age."--Steve Fowler, Senior Vice President, The 3DO Company

"LaPlante and Seidner take us on a whirlwind tour of entertainment possibilities in the new millennium."--Bruce Leichtman, Director, Media & Entertainment Strategies, The Yankee Group

"A must read for anyone in, or interested in, the [digital entertainment] industry. Armed with this book, you can feel confident that you are prepared for the digital revolution!"--Ken Rutkowski, CEO Tech Talk Broadcasting, Inc.

"The authors deliver keen insights into the value of interactivity, including the technologies and fascinating people who are changing the way we are entertained, informed, and educated."--Gary H. Arlen, President, Arlen Communications, Inc.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 267-270) and index.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

Preface (p. xi)
Part 1 Everything's Up for Grabs (p. 1)
Chapter 1 What's Going On? (p. 3)
Why Everything's Up for Grabs (p. 5)
California Dreaming (p. 8)
Adapting like Crazy (p. 10)
It's Hard to See What's Coming When You're Focused on the Past (p. 15)
Chapter 2 The Wild, Wild West (p. 19)
Net Worth (p. 23)
The Sheriff Takes a Holiday (p. 26)
The Biggest Landgrab Ever (p. 30)
A Different Kind of Network, A Different Kind of Person (p. 32)
Chapter 3 Let's Get Personal (p. 35)
Don't Look Now (p. 37)
It's All about Relationships (p. 38)
Would You Watch More TV If Someone Paid You to? (p. 41)
Such a Deal (p. 43)
Great Service Keeps Customers Coming Back (p. 46)
The Dark Side of the Force (p. 48)
Chapter 4 It's a Small World after All (p. 51)
Baywatch Meets Niemann-Marcus (p. 53)
Local Will Now Mean Global, and Vice Versa (p. 55)
Act Globally, Think Locally (p. 59)
Part 2 New Tricks For Old Pets (p. 63)
Chapter 5 Stop Making Waves (p. 65)
Just Imagine (p. 65)
Something's Coming, Something Big (p. 71)
It's Global--It's Everywhere--It Really Is a Small World, after All (p. 76)
An Unlimited Smorgasbord (p. 79)
Interactivity Gets Us What We Want (p. 80)
It's Amazing That It Files at All (p. 83)
It's All for Real (p. 84)
Brave New World (p. 85)
Chapter 6 It Ain't Groovy (p. 89)
Twenty Billion Records, Give or Take a Few (p. 93)
The Next Big Thing (p. 96)
A River Runs through It (p. 96)
A River Runs over It (p. 98)
Bit by Bit (p. 99)
"To Every Man Is Given the Key to the Gates of Heaven. The Same Key Opens the Gates of Hell." (p. 102)
Old Friends, New Enemies? (p. 105)
Artists as Labels (p. 110)
Everybody's Doing It (p. 111)
It's Groovy That It Ain't Groovy (p. 112)
An Epic Story (p. 114)
Cents and Sensibility (p. 115)
Chapter 7 Tube or Not Tube (p. 119)
And Something Completely Similar (p. 122)
You Ain't Seen Nuthin' Yet (p. 123)
It's Been a Long Time Coming (p. 126)
A Government Mandate (p. 127)
Godzilla Gently Places a Toe in the Ocean (p. 130)
Some More Quickly Than Others (p. 130)
A New Kind of Television (p. 134)
Our Programming Can Generate More Money Than Your Sludge Can (p. 137)
I Like Aggregators So Much, I Became One (p. 138)
Tube or Not Tube--That Is the Question (p. 143)
Chapter 8 Computer Games for the Rest of Us (p. 145)
Avoiding the "G" Word (p. 148)
Choose Your Platform (p. 151)
Games for the Rest of Us (p. 155)
Breaking the Gender Barrier (p. 157)
Breaking the On-Line Barrier (p. 161)
Continued Questions about Revenue Opportunities (p. 165)
Breaking the Mold (p. 167)
Part 3 Adapt or Die (p. 173)
Chapter 9 Brought to You by ... (Ads) (p. 175)
Let Me Tell You a Story (p. 178)
The Right Information, to the Right Person, at the Right Time (p. 181)
Getting More Respect (p. 188)
As Long As It Results in More Profits (p. 189)
Broad or Narrow (p. 190)
Stolen Streams (p. 191)
A Place for Everything, and Everything in Its Place (p. 193)
Chapter 10 Brought to You by ... (Networks) (p. 197)
Tell Me--Oh, What Can I Do? (p. 200)
Easy Enough for Even Dad to Use (p. 201)
Availability (p. 202)
Bandwidth (p. 205)
Reliability (p. 205)
Last, but Not Least, Price Matters (p. 206)
And the Winner Is ...? (p. 207)
Open and Closed (p. 209)
Chapter 11 Family Feud (p. 213)
Before and After (p. 216)
The Entrepreneur Formerly Known as Prince (p. 216)
We Want Our Rights. And We Don't Care How. We Want Our Revolution, Now! (p. 219)
So, What's the Story? (p. 222)
Limited Time, Limited Money, (Increasingly) Limited Consumer Attention Spans (p. 226)
Chapter 12 So, What's the Story? (p. 229)
A Nation of Control Freaks (p. 231)
Six Degrees of Interaction (p. 232)
Build Your Own Movie (p. 236)
The Notion of Transmedia (p. 243)
Finding a Form That Suits Us (p. 244)
Chapter 13 New Playrooms (p. 247)
Get Out of the House! (p. 249)
The Games People Play (Together) (p. 251)
Challenges Abound (p. 256)
Portents of the Future (p. 258)
Epilogue: Expect the Unexpected (p. 263)
Index (p. 271)
About the Authors (p. 287)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Alice LaPlante is an award-winning computer industry journalist. Formerly the news editor for InfoWorld, her technology and management articles have appeared in Forbes ASAP, Business Week, ComputerWorld, and PC World.
Rich Seidner is an international media consultant with more than thirty years in the technology business.