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Games on Your Cell Phone

Techstination feature for Thursday, May 15, 2003

Games on your cell phone. Bloomberg Boot Camp, a report on today's technology. They are mostly simple titles that are out there so far... but Sprint PCS says games are catching on with cell phone users. Senior marketing director Jeff Hallock says 120 titles are now available... with many more being announced this week at the E3 trade show in Los Angeles..

"We've been really please with the results so far. In fact we have almost two million multi-player and single player games that have been downloaded since the launch of PCS Vision last August."

The games typically cost a couple of dollars, far less than those available for game consoles on Nintendo's Game Boy systems. Hallock says games on phones are often used as a diversion by customers when they have a few minutes to spare. Next up... multi platform games that allow players on cell phones compete with those using computers or PDAs. Hallock says the money making potential is significant...

"Well this certainly helps us along the path of selling more PCS Vision to customers which gives them a chance to do more than just talk on their phone. And we know that people want to have some fun. So this is right up the middle in terms of giving both the youth market and an adult market the chance to get some entertainment in a way that they really haven't had a way to experience it in the past."

Sprint competitors such as Verizon are counting on cell phone games as money makers too. A couple of downsides... playing games can cut down on your phone's battery life... and online play can mean that calls... what you bought the phone for in the first place... can't get through. Bloomberg Boot Camp, I'm Fred Fishkin.