Technology: Video Games

TOKYO - Nintendo's hit Wii console with its wandlike remote controller has been targeted in patent infringement complaints by a U.S. technology company.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hillcrest Laboratories asked a trade panel to determine if Nintendo Co (7974.OS) and its U.S. subsidiary have infringed four patents to make its top-selling Wii game, according to a filing on Wednesday and a Hillcrest statement.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - A US firm said Wednesday it had filed legal actions against Japanese-based Nintendo claiming patent infringement by the wildly popular Wii game console.

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - US videogame giant Electronic Arts (EA) confirmed Wednesday it shifted from a hostile bid for "Grand Theft Auto" maker Take-Two Interactive to friendly talks about its two-billion-dollar offer.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Indian conglomerate Reliance ADA Group's media and entertainment division is launching Jump Games U.S.A., a publisher and developer of mobile video games, in its latest effort to expand into the United States.

NEW YORK - EatDrinkOrDie.com is hoping to find the culinary equivalent of Paris Hilton's political campaign ad.

NEW YORK - For PlayStation 3 fans who want to do more than mash buttons when playing games on the console, Sony Corp. is introducing a wireless keypad that can be attached to the system's controller for typing and Web browsing.

Your kids can learn math, how to tell time and other skills needed for school — and you don't have to pry them away from video games.

LEIPZIG, Germany (Reuters) - Consumer electronics giant Sony (6758.T) announced a new version of its Playstation Portable handheld games console that can be used as a telephone, to go on sale in Europe and the United States in mid-October.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. antitrust authorities would approve a combination of Electronic Arts Inc with rival video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software, according to letters from the Federal Trade Commission posted on the agency's web site.

LEIPZIG, Germany (Reuters) - Video games publisher Electronic Arts set a launch date of February 20, 2009 for the latest installment of its biggest-selling franchise, the Sims, on Wednesday.

The Nintendo Wii remains the hottest selling next generation video game system, outpacing competing consoles for the 10th straight month.

I'm a sucker for big, juicy games with flashy graphics, block-rockin' audio and tons of things to do. This summer has been unusually rich in such ambitious productions, with high-profile releases like "Metal Gear Solid 4," "Ninja Gaiden II" and "Grid."

NEW YORK - Video game publisher Electronic Arts Inc. is retracting its hostile bid for smaller rival Take-Two Interactive Software Inc., but a deal — and a friendly one at that — is likelier than ever.

The Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive Software acquisition drama continues as the mammoth video-game publisher said it won't extend a Monday deadline for its $2 billion offer to buy Take-Two, maker of the Grand Theft Auto franchise series.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp's Xbox 360 beat Sony Corp's (6758.T) PlayStation 3 in Japan weekly sales for the first time two weeks ago, riding robust demand for a recent Xbox 360 title produced by Namco Bandai Holdings (7832.T), a magazine publisher said.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Playing video games improves manual dexterity among surgeons, making them faster and less likely to make mistakes, US researchers have said.

U.S. sales of video-game consoles and software jumped 28 percent last month compared to last year, according to market researcher NPD Group. Nintendo's DS portable and Wii remained the most popular systems.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Sony Corp (6758.T) does not plan to announce price cuts to its flagship PlayStation 3 games console at Europe's biggest video games fair in Leipzig, Germany next week, a company spokesman said on Friday.

PLAYA BONITA, Panama (Reuters) - Japan's Nintendo plans a more aggressive marketing campaign in Spanish to corner Latin America's growing games market and tap growing appetite for fitness and sports titles.

SEATTLE (Reuters) - U.S. video game sales rose 28 percent in July from a year earlier, boosted by continued strong demand for Nintendo Co Ltd's (7974.OS) Wii console, according to data from research firm NPD on Thursday.

LOS ANGELES - Gamers with a hankering to watch music videos will have more choices after Warner Music Group Corp. announced Thursday it is adding its library of videos to Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 game console.

NEW YORK - Even in a seasonally slow month and with the economy in the doldrums, U.S. sales of video game hardware and software soared 28 percent in July, hitting $1.19 billion.

As always, when video game industry research firm The NPD Group puts out its monthly numbers, each of the big hardware companies--Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony--find their own unique positive spin, regardless what the numbers show.

Cynical Peak Software on Thursday announced the release of Rivet 1.2, an update to its application that helps Mac users stream content to an Xbox 360 video game console on the same network. A free update for registered users, Rivet 1.2 costs $18.95.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Electronic Arts, one of the world's top two video game publishers, expects industry revenue to grow by at least 20 percent this year in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, a top executive told Reuters.

Lian Li announces what may be the first replacement chassis for the Xbox 360. This is a warranty killer, obviously, but will it help defeat Red Rings of Death?

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Take a group of scientists and a video game designer and what do you get? Spore, a game that can help teach players some evolutionary biology.

NEW YORK - Looking at its size, shape, white wrist strap and B-button on the bottom, it's easy to compare the Stix with the Wiimote, the wireless controller for the popular Nintendo gaming console. Except the Stix is for your PC.