Tag Archives | Rovio

Angry Birds to Get the NFC Treatment

Posted by Ed Oswald on June 14, 2011 at 2:59 pm

And you thought near-field communication (NFC) was just for mobile payments! Angry Birds developer Rovio said Tuesday that it will incorporate the technology into a future release of the game.

Called “Magic Places,” the feature will unlock functionality or new game levels when two NFC-enabled phones are tapped together, or a gameplayer visits a certain location, say company executives.

According to GigaOm’s Ryan Kim, Rovio has plans to use the “Magic Places” functionality across all its games. However, with the game now passing 200 million downloads, its a good place to start. The goal is to make the game a more social experience, and using technologies like NFC and GPS (also apparently planned) will accomplish that.

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A Christmas Without Angry Birds

Posted by David Worthington on December 16, 2010 at 9:00 am

Demand for smartphone game developer Rovio’s Angry Birds plush toys has been so great that order fulfillment is flying past the holiday season, and customer service is in the pigpen.

Angry Birds has taken smartphone gaming by storm, so much so that it is even drawing comparisons to the venerable Pac-Man franchise. Rovio has been a savvy marketeer of its feathered protagonists with holiday themed editions of the game, and, most recently, plush toys.

Enter Murphy’s Law: Rovio has dramatically underestimated demand. Customers are reporting having paid with the expectation of shipment during the holiday season only to be told that their expectations have flown the coop. Orders will not be fulfilled until January.

Customers that contacted Rovio received this e-mail, “Due to unforeseen demand for Angry Birds plush toys, our logistics and customer service have been overwhelmed and we have not been able to respond promptly to all queries. If you have already contacted us regarding your order, our staff is working on the case to resolve any problems and you will receive a reply at the earliest opportunity.”

Let’s hope that its customers don’t own any human-sized slingshots.

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