190 !!Chapter 11
!!Video game music is
also heard on the concert
stage. Major symphony or-
chestras perform the music,
which is synchronized with
clips from popular video
games; laser beams shoot
across the audience. The
presentation is calledVideo
Games Live, with atten-
dance of over 100,000
worldwide as of August- Video game com-
poser Tommy Tallarico is the
host and one of the found-
ers ofVideo Games Live.
the composer can receive substantial roy-
alties from these sources of revenue.
These rights are referred to asancillary
rights. (Ancillary rights occur when music
composed for games is used in other
mediums. Composers’ compensation for
these rights is negotiable.)
Another revenue stream is derived
from product placement within a game,
which has been a source of revenue for the
motion picture and television industries
for many years. For instance, a game char-
acter might be drinking Pepsi-Cola, or a
character is watching a Sony television
set. Product placement in games is
expected to generate hundreds of millions
of dollars by 2010, according to Yankee
Research, a research and consulting ser-
vice.
Game Platforms !!‘‘Hosted by Victor
Lucas, Julie Stoffer and
Tommy Tallarico, Electric
Playground is a Telly
Award–winning show that
goes on location and be-
hind the scenes of the video
game industry to provide
interviews with game devel-
opers, previews of upcom-
ing games, industry news,
technology features and ce-
lebrity gamer segments, as
well as a look at the latest
gadgets, toys and comics
that gamers are interested
in’’ (www.g4tv.com/
electricplayground/index
.html).The three companies that manufacture
competitive consoles are Microsoft’s Xbox
360, Nintendo’s Wii (pronounced ‘‘we’’),
and Sony’s PlayStation 3. These platforms
offer game players the option of playing
against opponents via the Internet. Gam-
ers can also download the most recent
program updates, which include new
music as well as new versions of games.
New games are also planned for the PC
format. The platform competition is
healthy for the industry and keeps con-
sumers interested in the medium.
The game industry is one of the pri-
mary sources of revenue in the entertain-
ment industry. Game companies not only
create games but also base game ideas on
motion picture franchises, which are
licensed. Electronic Arts created games
based onThe Lord of the Rings,James Bond, andHarry Potter. Game publish-
ers are also developing games created using the personas of music super-
stars. Rapper 50 Cent is featured in the game ‘‘50 Cent: Bulletproff,’’ which