Retailers bank on Twitter, Facebook to boost sales in holiday season

November 19th, 2009 more images more images Holiday Shopping Notebook: Holiday gimmicks As you rush into the holiday shopping season, you may catch a whiff of cookies baking at the mall or find a note from a roving elf on your iPhone or get a coupon by text message. Across the nation, retailers and mall owners are trying to spark the holiday spirit with longer hours, more live music, twittering elves and even fresh-baked cookies.

August 19th, 2009 Summary Box: Sony cuts price of PS3 by $100GEARING UP FOR HOLIDAYS: Sony Corp.'s move to cut the price of its PlayStation 3 console by $100 comes well ahead of the holiday season and should boost sales not just for Sony but the video game industry as a whole during this important period. LONG EXPECTED: The 80-gigabyte PS3 will now cost $299 and a slimmer, lighter one is planned for the same price.

November 5th, 2009 Activision posts 3Q profit, backs 2009 outlookNEW YORK — It's been a rough year for the video game industry, but Activision Blizzard Inc. reported a profit for its third quarter because of lower costs and a good response for games such as "Guitar Hero 5" and "World of Warcraft." It also reaffirmed its guidance for the full year, citing a big expected release next week for "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," which could easily be the most lucrative entertainment launch this holiday season.

November 17th, 2009 Wal-Mart offers savings on toys, video gamesNEW YORK — Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Tuesday unveiled weekly savings starting this Saturday on popular toys and video games that it is pitching as comparable to the sales blitz the day after Thanksgiving.

November 18th, 2009 more images more images Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 friend Facebook NEW YORK — Users of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 video game consoles can now brag about their achievements on Facebook as both systems integrate the social network this week. Microsoft Corp.

June 19th, 2009 RIM 1Q profit tops view, shares wobble on outlookTORONTO — BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. on Thursday reported a better-than-expected 33 percent jump in first-quarter profit as the company continues to boost market share among non-corporate customers.

July 14th, 2009 Take-Two cuts outlook on BioShock 2 delaySAN FRANCISCO — Shares of Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. plunged 13 percent in after-hours trading after the video game maker cut its financial outlook, citing lackluster orders from retailers and the delay of a popular new title.

July 22nd, 2009 Social network for gamers helps friends playNEW YORK — Raptr, a social network targeting gamers, is hoping to make it easier to see what your friends are currently playing on a broad range of platforms such as the Xbox 360 and personal computers. And if you want, you can join them in the action.

September 11th, 2009 NPD: Video game sales slide again in AugustNEW YORK — Retail sales of video games have declined for six straight months. Analysts are blaming the slow August — which was expected — in part on a disappointing showing from the latest "Madden" title from Electronic Arts.

June 1st, 2009 Spielberg unveils motion control for Xbox 360LOS ANGELES — Gamers, get ready for your close-up. Steven Spielberg was on hand to introduce a prototype camera Monday that can be used as a controller for the Xbox 360.

September 3rd, 2009 Citigroup, Nokia, Hovnanian are big moversNEW YORK — The following stocks were among those that moved substantially or traded heavily Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange: NYSE: Citigroup Inc., up 21 cents at $4.77 Shareholders approved a plan to increase the bank's outstanding stock, allowing it to complete a debt swap that will improve cash flow. Nokia Corp., up 61 cents at $13.91 The world's biggest maker of cell phones unveiled new models that boast more music features and mesh better with Facebook.

February 11th, 2009 TORONTO - Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) plunged by 15 percent on the Toronto Stock Exchange Wednesday after the global wireless communication giant forecast less-than-expected profits for the fourth quarter of 2008. In a statement, the Waterloo-based Canadian company said that it ``expects revenue for the fourth quarter to be at or near the mid-point of the previously guided range.

September 2nd, 2009 Social Networking is the way to go these days. As people don't have much time to interact with each other face to face they are doing it in the cyber world.

October 15th, 2009 Sony to launch PlayStation with bigger hard driveNEW YORK — To give more room for game, movie and music downloads, Sony is launching a PlayStation 3 with a larger hard drive on Nov. 3. The $350 gaming console will have a 250 gigabyte hard drive, more than twice as big as the recently launched slimmer, lighter PlayStation 3.

July 30th, 2009 Motorola posts unexpected 2Q profitNEW YORK — Helped by deep cost cuts, Motorola Inc. on Thursday posted an unexpected profit for the second quarter after several quarters of losses, and said it expected things to keep improving this year.