Thumbplay News

NEW YORK - June 21, 2006 - Thumbplay Inc., the leading online retailer of mobile entertainment content, today announced an agreement with Hands-On Mobile to distribute selections from its portfolio of innovative mobile games and entertainment applications. Thumbplay's growing community of members will have direct access to exciting Hands-On Mobile content including blockbuster game titles such as X-Men™ Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse, Top Gun™ Air Combat 2 and Monopoly Tycoon on www.Thumbplay.com.

Thumbplay will distribute more than 20 action, sports, strategy and casino mobile games published by Hands-On Mobile. Additionally, Thumbplay subscribers can enjoy an entertaining array of Hands-On Mobile's personalized applications and popular wallpapers. Thumbplay will promote the games through its Web site, www.thumbplay.com and through targeted e-mails and SMS messages to its growing membership base. Games and other premium content can be purchased as part of the Thumbplay subscription plan or on an à la carte basis.

"Our members' demand for new and engaging game titles continues to grow, making games a key product category for Thumbplay," said Are Traasdahl, founder and CEO of Thumbplay. "Our relationship with Hands-On Mobile enables us to deliver an even greater selection of blockbuster content directly to our member base, which has come to expect the best in mobile entertainment."

"We have found discovery to be a major barrier for mobile game consumers, who cited not having the right choice of available games as a leading reason they did not return to make purchases month after month," said Seamus McAteer, senior analyst and chief product architect, M:Metrics. "Innovative direct-to-consumer destinations that partner with carriers and game publishers to improve the merchandizing and discovery process of mobile games play a significant role in the overall growth of mobile content and total gaming revenue."

"Thumbplay's success in the direct-to-consumer market represents an excellent opportunity for us to pursue an integral part of our business," said Jonathan Sacks, president and CEO of Hands-On Mobile. "We are excited to have access to Thumbplay's extensive user community and look forward to expanding our distribution and reaching a new customer base."

Some Hands-On Mobile titles soon to be available to Thumbplay members include:

X-Men™ Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse
To defeat the greatest evil, the X-Men will join their greatest enemy: Magneto and his evil Brotherhood. Based on the sequel to the blockbuster Activision console game, you must form your own team from a choice of five different mutants, including Magneto, Juggernaut and Wolverine. Use awesome combo attacks and upgrade your abilities by collecting experience points and spending them to improve your powers. Each character has their own mutant abilities, from Juggernaut's devastating ground attacks to Wolverine's Berserker Frenzy. With incredible graphics and sound this is the greatest comic book adventure ever seen on mobile.

Top Gun™ Air Combat 2
Play as Maverick or Iceman from the Top Gun movie. This game features high-skill, high-octane vertical scrolling arcade action. Defeat waves of enemies and end-of-level bosses with cannons and missiles. Collect a huge range of power-ups to boost your firepower to insane levels. Upload your high score and compare your skills to the rest of the world.

Monopoly Tycoon
Play Monopoly as you have never seen it before and create your own business empire to dominate the world. Compete for control of industries and city blocks as you rush to ruin your opponents and make the biggest profit possible for yourself. Buy properties, start companies and outmaneuver two other would-be tycoons, all of whom are determined to bankrupt you. You have complete control over everything: will you refurbish an old building or demolish it completely and construct a new citylandmark from the ground up? What about the details of your businesses, do you stack'em high and sell'em low or go for a quality over quantity approach? The choice is yours, but remember that in this city making money is all that counts!

About Thumbplay
Thumbplay, Inc. is a leading online retailer of mobile entertainment content. The company aggregates, promotes and delivers mobile content directly to members via Thumbplay.com. The site offers ringtones, wallpapers, games and text-based services through a membership-based, community experience. Thumbplay, headquartered in New York, was founded by CEO Are Traasdahl and Executive Vice President, Marketing Evan Schwartz.

About Hands-On Mobile
Hands-On Mobile is a leading global publisher of mobile lifestyle, games and personalization products targeting all market segments of the mobile handset marketplace. With operations in four continents, Hands-On Mobile develops, publishes and distributes mobile content to more than 150 of the world's leading operators in 40 countries. Hands-On Mobile provides operators and their customers with the world's best entertainment brands and applications and provides brand owners with the shortest route to market. The Hands-On content catalog is diverse, including BREW, Java, SMS, MMS, and WAP games, and music, sports, lifestyle, personalization, and information-services subscription products. Hands-On Mobile is a U.S. corporation with headquarters in San Francisco and offices in San Diego and Los Angeles, California; London and Bollington, England; Krakow, Poland; Săo Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai and Beijing, China; and Seoul, Korea. For more information about Hands-On Mobile's products and organization please visit www.HandsOn.com.

NOTE: All company and/or product names may be trade names, trademarks and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated.

Labels: press-release

posted by Thumbplay at 1:15 PM