2011 Social Gaming Updates

General:
 
–     Online casino games developer PopCap said to be launching a series of casino-style games on Facebook.  New domain purchases, changes to a Facebook page and a recent trademark application for ‘Lucky GemCasino’ by PopCap look to be a possible indicator of a shift to a casino offering.
 
–     Google+, the internet giant's charge into the social networking sector, utilises US social games developer Zynga on the ground floor of the project with games that include its online poker product.
 
–     On the back of a new multi games release Zynga confirmed the impending launch of a Zynga independent social games site for Zynga games dubbed "Project Z".
 
–     Berlin-based social gaming developer Crowdpark will use $ 6 million raised from German venture capital firms to fuel the development of new games and cross-platform functionality of its popular social betting game Bet Tycoon.
 
–     The rapid growth of social network gaming has attracted the attention of land and online slots developer WMS Gaming with increasing numbers of social gaming fans congregating on the WMS website Player's Life.
 
–     MGM Resorts is moving into the internet social gaming sector in an initiative that it hopes will bring more players into its land casinos.
 
 
New Social Gaming Websites:
 
–     www.faceupgaming.com
 
Game Face Gaming Inc., has launched a reality gaming social network subscription based gaming site. The company is currently Beta testing its non wagering proprietary gaming platform FaceUpGaming.com which Game Face Gaming intends developing into a global gaming network that will comprise games from all regions, native languages and cross language functionality.