APRIL 8, 2010 • During its iPhone OS 4.0 announcement, Apple Inc. confirmed it will launch a dedicated game service for the iPhone and iPod Touch this summer, and the iPad this fall. The Apple Game Center will operate very much like Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network – with leaderboards,  achievements, friend lists and matchmaking invitations – but an operating system first for mobile devices. Microsoft Corp. is not expected to have Xbox Live integration with Windows Phone 7 until after Apple Game Center launches. Since Apple Game Center is built into iPhone OS 4.0, app developers will have an easier time bringing these features to their titles.

Impact: While not the same as Nintendo, Microsoft or Sony, Apple has established itself as a de-facto 1^st party games publisher.  It takes a 30% fee of every game sold on its platforms and as of early April, has an installed base of over 85 million iPhones and iPod Touch devices combined.  The rollout of Game Center will only help to solidify the iPhone as a legitimate gaming platform that has been mostly complementary to the established games market as mobile games sales were previously all but negligible.  However, Nintendo, despite continuing to advance the DS platform through new handhelds, will face increased competitive pressure as the iPod Touch continues to reach younger gamers in larger numbers.