AT&T casts sponsorship spell over new 'Harry Potter: Wizards Unite' game

AT&T is now part of Harry Potter lore as the first brand to ink a sponsorship deal with the new augmented reality game about the wizarding world. AT&T stores are incorporated into the landscape of the game, called “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite,” which is by Niantic, the creator of “Pokémon Go." AT&T acquired Time Warner last year, in a deal that included Warner Bros., the studio that owns rights to Harry Potter. AT&T and Cricket Wireless, which it owns, appear to be the only sponsors in the game so far, which debuted Friday after a soft launch on Thursday. An AT&T spokeswoman confirmed its involvement in the game but declined to reveal financial terms of the integration. The game includes "inns" and "fortresses" that can be accessed when playing from inside more than 10,000 AT&T and Cricket Wireless retail stores. The Inns and fortresses allow players to recharge their energy, find challenges or encounter other virtual wizards and magical creatures. The promotion started today for AT&T and will kick off on July 15 for Cricket. The game is positioned to tap into the raging fandom of the Harry Potter books and movie franchise while replicating the success of “Pokémon Go,” which showed the possibilities of augmented reality in mobile games. Starbucks and Sprint became the first U.S. sponsors in “Pokémon Go” six months after it was released in July 2016. Their logos appeared in the game map, in a move to lure players to visit their physical... Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'

[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-21 21:00:51 UTC ]
News tagged with: #virtual space #in-app purchases #$2 million #senior vp #digital marketing #nielsen #time warner #harry potter

Other Publishing stories related to: ' AT&T casts sponsorship spell over new 'Harry Potter: Wizards Unite' game '


Apple removes more unlicensed games from the App Store in China

The App Store is reportedly looking a little different in China today. According to Reuters, Apple has removed roughly 39,000 games owned by developers and publishers that don’t have an ISBN (International Standard Book Number) from the Chinese gover... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2020-12-31 13:01:44 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #china today #app store #isbn


Shanghai police say suspect detained in games tycoon's death

Police in Shanghai say a suspect has been detained in the death by possible poisoning of the billionaire founder of a Chinese video game company that is producing films based on popular science fiction novel “The Three-Body Problem.” Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2020-12-28 14:47:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #three-body problem #science fiction


The Cold Millions by Jess Walter, Read by a Full Cast

Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Narrator Edoardo Ballerini anchors a full-cast performance of The Cold Millions, a story that... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-28 09:00:55 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #cold millions #jess walter #full cast #editors recommend #audiobook listening #audiobook clips #featured listens #takes place #early 1900s #audiobook


DK donates 1,000 books to Manchester United Foundation

DK has donated 1,000 copies of Life Cycles to youth education charity the Manchester United Foundation. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-12-21 17:25:24 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


The cast for George Saunders’ new audiobook is very cool.

George Saunders’ new book, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life, is out next month and promises to be a literary master class on the short story. Drawing from his teaching career at Syracuse’s MFA program, Saunders walks readers... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-17 17:00:15 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #george saunders #master class #short story #mfa program #literary hub #audiobook


Print Unit Sales Soared Last Week

Holiday book buying kicked into high gear last week, with unit sales of print books jumping 44.3% over the week ended November 29, 2020, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-12-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #high gear


Jeremy O. Harris is donating a collection of plays by Black writers to libraries across the country.

On Late Night with Seth Meyers this week, Slave Play and Daddy playwright Jeremy O. Harris announced he is donating a collection of 15 plays by Black playwrights to 53 libraries and community centers across the United States—and is donating one such collection to Northwestern University in Seth... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-12-09 17:29:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #black writers #late night #seth meyers #black playwrights #community centers #united states— #northwestern university #literary hub #libraries


'Lord Of The Rings' Cast, Experts Form Fellowship To Buy House Of J.R.R. Tolkien

The collective hopes to turn the Oxford home of the famed author into a center celebrating his works. Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2020-12-02 20:54:10 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #famed author


The Hugo Awards will have a video game category in 2021

For the first time in its storied history, the Hugo Awards will honor a video game. The annual literary award has avoided recognizing the medium for years, but present circumstances being what they are, it will make an exception at the next World Sci... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2020-11-23 22:04:25 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #hugo awards #video game #literary award


Ex-PMs unite in Australia in bid to curb power of Murdoch empire

Former rivals to star in Leveson-style inquiry into mogul’s near-monopoly of the country’s mediaIn high public office, both men lived and died at the word of the world’s most influential media mogul, Rupert Murdoch. But now two former Australian prime ministers are at the vanguard of a campaign... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2020-11-22 07:30:15 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #murdoch empire #rupert murdoch #kevin rudd #malcolm turnbull #news corp


S&S bags Kamala Harris biography

Simon & Schuster UK is to publish Kamala’s Way, a biography of the new US vice president elect Kamala Harris, written by journalist Dan Morain.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-20 12:02:47 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Print Unit Sales Jump in Mid-November

With all categories posting gains of at least 11%, unit sales of print books jumped 19.5% in the week ended Nov. 14, 2020, over the comparable week in 2019, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-11-20 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Tory-shaming Manchester United star Marcus Rashford is launching a children’s book club.

As many on this side of the pond may not know, Manchester United and England footballer Marcus Rashford is currently all that stands between the United Kingdom and compete moral ruination. In a year where a particularly grotesque grotesquerie of Brexiteer Tories consolidated power,... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-11-17 19:04:34 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book club #manchester united #united kingdom #literary hub #children's book #children’s book


V2 by Robert Harris, Read by David Rintoul

Every Monday through Friday, AudioFile’s editors recommend the best in audiobook listening. We keep our daily episodes short and sweet, with audiobook clips to give you a sample of our featured listens. Host Jo Reed and AudioFile’s Robin Whitten share their thoughts on Robert Harris’s latest... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-11-17 17:16:17 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #robert harris #editors recommend #audiobook listening #audiobook clips #featured listens #latest audiobook #literary hub #audiobook


Halls hails Bookshop site as 'game-changer' for indies

New retail website Bookshop.org has been hailed as a “game-changer” by Booksellers Association m.d. Meryl Halls while its founder has said more features are on the way. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-17 09:40:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #meryl halls #booksellers association #bookshop


How Steve Martin and illustrator Harry Bliss ended up working on the ‘upbeat book’ we all need right now

The actor-writer-musician and illustrator teamed up on the new book “A Wealth of Pigeons.” Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-11-16 13:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #steve martin


Chronicle Books acquires three game brands from Wild and Wolf

Chronicle Books, which is distributed in the UK by Abrams & Chronicle Books, has acquired three "signature" Wild and Wolf game and toy brands.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-16 00:22:57 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #game brands #chronicle books


Kamala Harris added to line-up for Little People, Big Dreams series

The Quarto Group's Frances Lincoln Children’s Books imprint has added US vice-president-elect Kamala Harris to its Little People, Big Dreams list for 2021.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-11-15 14:59:22 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #quarto group #books imprint #quarto


Will Dutch library ban on 'Black Pete' books spell end for 'racist' festive tradition?

The portrayal of Santa’s Moor servant ‘Zwarte Piet’ is widely seen as offensive. Protesters applaud the decision to remove the character from children’s books Public libraries across the Netherlands are removing from the shelves children’s books depicting a black-faced Zwarte Piet, a side-kick... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2020-11-15 10:10:52 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #latest sign #white people #early december #public libraries


Chirp Audiobooks Review: Does Chirp Change the Audiobook Game?

What is Chirp? How does it differ from other services like Audible? And, is it worth getting? Learn more in our Chirp audiobooks review! Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2020-11-13 11:34:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #audiobook