Games and entertainment

Data-heavy services like YouTube are apparently costing a South Korean Internet Service Provider serious money, and the ISP doesn't want to take it any longer.

Speaking to Reuters in an interview published last night, Kim Taehwan, vice president of KT, Korea's largest ISP, said that his company is tired of "free riding" Internet streaming services that consume huge amounts of data and don't pay it a dime to do so.

"We want to set a rule that we can equally apply to every platform operator that offers data-heavy content as those services threaten to … Read more

Online role-playing games, typically of the massively multiplayer variety, have a reputation for wreaking havoc on real-world relationships.

Now, researchers can back up that notion with survey results and can pinpoint the problems that result from such gaming. The survey, from researchers at Brigham Young University, is set to appear tomorrow in the Journal of Leisure Research.

The findings confirm what many gamers know all too intimately--perhaps having heard the message delivered loudly in words with four letters. Three-quarters of spouses of online gamers wish their partners would put more time and effort into their marriages than they put into … Read more

Windows users can grab some Angry Birds and a host of other games when Microsoft's Windows Store opens for business later this month.

The new store is slated to launch in preview mode by the end of February at the same time the Windows 8 Consumer Preview debuts.

Citing a "source familiar with Microsoft's plans," The Verge has spilled the beans on which games will be among the first titles to pop up in the store. Though Pinball and Solitaire will automatically come with the Windows 8 Consumer Preview, several other games will be available for … Read more

Maybe Zynga's decision to price its IPO at $10 a share wasn't so bad, after all.

The social-gaming company's stock has risen by more than 14 percent at times this morning, as investors responded positively to the company's strong ties with Facebook.

The world's largest social network yesterday filed its S-1 papers with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, kicking off plans to go public on a valuation that could possibly hit $100 billion. For starters in the IPO, Facebook hopes to raise $5 billion. A deeper dive into its financials yesterday revealed that … Read more

Microsoft began distancing itself from browser plug-ins last year starting with Internet Explorer on Windows 8's Metro interface, but it spoke more definitively today: plug-ins are bad for the Web.

"Metro-style IE runs plug-in free to improve battery life as well as security, reliability, and privacy for consumers," said John Hrvatin, Internet Explorer program manager lead, in a blog post. "A plug-in free Web benefits consumers and developers and we all take part in the transition."

The upcoming IE10 browser doesn't just run in Metro, Microsoft's next-generation, touch-centric interface geared for tablets and … Read more

A teaser video showing actor Matthew Broderick seemingly reprising his role as the iconic "Ferris Bueller" became an Internet sensation last week. But it appears now that all the excitement surrounding it might be short-lived.

Honda today confirmed that the teaser video, which was viewed over 4 million times after going viral, was part of a two-and-a-half-minute commercial it plans to air during the Super Bowl on Sunday to promote its 2012 CR-V automobile.

"To celebrate the launch of the all-new 2012 CR-V, Honda brought 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' back in a big game commercial," … Read more

Social-gaming company Zynga is once again in a competitor's crosshairs.

Buffalo Studios released an infographic yesterday, obtained by Venturebeat, that charges Zynga with copying its flagship game Bingo Blitz with its own as-yet-released Bingo-focused title, Zynga Bingo.

"Hello, Zynga," the infographic reads. "We are moved that your new game was so inspired by our innovative product, Bingo Blitz. Bingo Blitz has been growing throughout the past year and has obviously earned the attention of titanic forces in the industry. You've obviously played our game, Bingo Blitz, a lot, along with over one million other Daily … Read more

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) tend to spend a majority of their free time in front of a screen, but little if any of that time on social activities such as e-mail or chat, according to new research out of Washington University in St. Louis.

Researchers analyzed data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2, which includes more than 1,000 13- to 16-year-olds in special ed who have ASDs, speech and language impairments, and learning disabilities.

While 28 percent of typically developing kids are reported as heavy TV watchers, this study found that more than twice as many … Read more

Amazon may be looking to cut into Netflix's action by launching a new video streaming service.

Citing information from industry sources, The New York Post said the new service would expand beyond Amazon's current Instant Video by launching as a standalone, subscription-based business.

Amazon's Instant Video is free with a $79 Amazon Prime subscription, though nonsubscribers can buy or rent individual movies and TV episodes on a per-title basis. In contrast, the new service would borrow a page from Netflix's business model. Amazon is just currently trying to figure out what to charge, one source told … Read more