04/28, 5:35pm
Lenovo investment Eedoo makes costly motion gaming
A recent Lenovo investment, Eedoo, is drawing criticism for the upcoming launch of China's first mainstream motion gaming system, the CT510. Pitched as a family entertainment system, the system is conspicuously like Microsoft's Kinect add-on for the Xbox 360 but is intended more as a general device with HD movie playback, karaoke, and motion-driven exercise apps. At $600, however, it costs more than the $399 US price of Microsoft's most advanced Xbox 360 and Kinect bundle.
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04/26, 6:40am
Nintendo struggles with gaming-first hardware
Nintendo has posted (pdf) its first annual loss turning in a result around $458 million into the red. The downturn has been blamed on the rise of mobile gaming on smartphones, and a lackluster holiday quarter where its aging Wii console and dramatic price reduction on the 3DS blew a hole in its finances. The said that it hopes to turn its fortunes around in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013 by launching its next-gen Wii U console and by starting to sell its 3DS for a profit, where it is currently selling it at a loss.
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04/13, 11:10am
NPD data shows Xbox 360 out front again
New NPD data published late Thursday gave the Xbox 360 not just a sustained lead in March but a rare milestone in hardware overall. At 371,000 units, Microsoft's console stayed in the lead for overall sales for the 15th consecutive month. The $430 million spent on the hardware and its games, however, was also larger than the combination of money spent supporting the Nintendo Wii and Sony PS3.
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04/03, 7:15pm
Nintendo pinning hopes on tablet shape over speed
Nintendo's upcoming
Wii U console may be less powerful than its predecessor. Citing developers, GamesIndustry.biz reports that, although the tablet-like gaming device may support full HD imaging, its graphics processing power may be less than that of the current generation of gaming devices. This could prove a disappointment to avid gamers when the system is released later this year.
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03/24, 12:05pm
Epic Mickey 2 gets remote add-ons just for Wii
Epic Mickey 2 developer Junction Point and its hardware accessory partner PDP have shown a pair of special Wii Nunchuk add-ons being built just for the game. The lead, an updated version of the Paintbrush Chuk, resembles Mickey's magic paintbrush and now has a glowing blue tip. A completely new entry, however, is based around newly introduced second character Oswald's remote and has both a glowing pink remote as well as a unique red analog stick.
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03/09, 3:55pm
Nielsen shows Apple infiltrating gaming
New Nielsen data has shown that cross-platform gaming is seeing heavy inroads, including from Apple. About 24 percent of US homes used at least two gaming platforms, but diversity was especially high among those who had a traditional handheld. In homes where a Nintendo DS or Sony PSP was was used by a child under 12, 66 percent also had some kind of iOS device.
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03/09, 1:55pm
NPD sees big rebound in February
Results posted late Thursday by the NPD Group chalked up a significantly improved February for gaming following a bleak January. Console hardware sales were up 87 percent over what they were in January, to $381.4 million, helped not just by 426,000 Xbox 360 sales but also by the PlayStation Vita. Sony had just four days of hardware sales that weren't directly quantified, but they were enough that the increase would have been a more modest if still healthy 62 percent.
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03/08, 11:20am
Epic Games pushes for faster PS4 and next Xbox
Epic Games is concerned that Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony might let Apple take over in gaming by being too conservative with their hardware, the developer's VP Mark Rein said in a discussion this week at the Game Developer Conference. The Bulletstorm and Gears of War creator told CVG his company was "constantly pushing" hardware designers to make high-end systems to give a clear incentive to pick their systems over what Apple makes. Rein liked Apple, but he didn't want TV gaming to disappear by eroding the gap in experiences.
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03/02, 12:30pm
Nintendo defends third straight patent lawsuit
Nintendo has fought off a patent lawsuit relating to its Wii Balance Board and software in Wii Fit and Wii Fit Plus games. A Maryland US District Court judge summarily dismissed the case, which was brought on by IA Labs. In a statement after the ruling, the video game maker went as far as describing IA Labs as a "patent troll," or a company that has no meaningful products and exists solely based on lawsuits and royalties.
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02/17, 1:00pm
Next-generation Xbox to carry Durango codename
Microsoft is internally referring to the third-generation Xbox console as Durango, Kotaku claimed to have learned from multiple sources near the project. If true, this means any future news and rumors will center around this name, though the finalized name on the console and packaging will differ and isn't yet known. Durango is the name of one of Mexico's 31 states, which follows the theme started by Natal, Microsoft's codename for Kinect and a city in Brazil.
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02/16, 11:05am
Nintendo now offers Hulu Plus on Wii console
Nintendo has made available the Hulu Plus app for US owners of its Wii home gaming console, as expected, though delayed. While the monthly fee to the subscription-based streaming TV show service will be $8 per month, new users will get a free, two-week trial. The service offers over 16,000 episodes from 400 current and classic TV shows from ABC, Comedy Central, Fox, NBC, MTV, and others.
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02/09, 8:50pm
Xbox 360 sales drop year to year but still ahead
New NPD data has once again given the Xbox 360 the lead in console sales in the US during January, but in grim conditions. At 270,000 systems in the month, it had enough to outpace the Nintendo Wii and Sony PS3, whose sales researchers were keeping secret. However, its performance was noticeably worse than a year ago, where it had moved 381,000 systems.
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01/27, 12:50pm
Wii U may launch under a different name: source
Nintendo is reportedly considering changing the name of its upcoming game console, the Wii U. The reason for this internal mulling, CVG heard, is supposedly due to the confusion with the 3D and 3DS, which Nintendo found to be too similar in the public eye. It supposedly fears the same would happen with the Wii U and its existing Wii.
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01/26, 5:20am
Nintendo to report first annual loss in late March
Nintendo’s quarterly earnings report out today (pdf) shows that company’s fourth quarter profit, normally a strong suit, collapsed by 61 percent compared to the same period in 2010. The company is now well on track to report a larger than expected annual loss, marking the first time it will have been in the red. Part of the gaming giant’s fortunes will rest on its Wii sequel, the Wii U, which Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said will reach the US and other key markets for the crucial holiday season 2012.
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01/18, 8:20pm
PS Vita sales continue to drop
New Media Create data has made clear that the PlayStation Vita isn't yet threatening most other consoles or smartphones. After a blockbuster launch in December, it has tapered off for a second time in a month to just 18,361 systems as of January 15. Every console's sales dropped off sharply in the same period, but it still sat behind Sony's seven-year-old PSP, the PS3, and Nintendo's 3DS.
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01/09, 3:45am
Netflix expands to Britain
Netflix confirmed its long-in-the-making plans to expand to Ireland and the UK on Monday. The service works much like its American equivalent but has some accommodation for the local market, such as The Only Way is Essex. Going to the area also brings the full Facebook integration that's currently off-limits to Americans.
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01/03, 8:40am
Nintendo more than recovers from early 3DS slump
Nintendo returned from holiday with word that it had shipped more than four million 3DS systems in the US. The milestone, which it reached in nine months, was enough to outsell the Wii over its own intro period. Nintendo had already passed four million in Japan just days earlier.
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12/28, 3:40pm
PS Vita sells just 72K units in first full week
Sales of Sony's recently launched PS Vita handheld games console have cooled significantly, the latest numbers from Japanese site 4Gamer.net reveal. The first full week of the console's being on the market saw just 72,479 Vitas find homes, a marked decrease from the 321,400 units sold in its first two days on the market. This puts the system in fifth place after the 3DS, the Vita's predecessor the PSP, Nintendo's Wii, and Sony's PS3, respectively.
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12/22, 7:00pm
NPD tracks smartphone and digital gaming at last
The NPD Group in a rare step began tracking some of the contributions of non-traditional gaming to the industry for the first time. It estimated that about $1.64 billion came from "other content," which includes mobile games as well as direct downloads and social network games, generated $1.64 billion in revenue. The growth made it larger than the traditional software side of the business, which dropped to $1.3 billion
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12/19, 2:10pm
LG Magic Motion Remote to power its 2012 TVs
LG gave a teaser for its CES plans Monday with plans for a brand new remote. The Magic Motion Remote Control will center on a Wii-like gesture system for navigation, such as by drawing the letter "V" to watch videos. Voice commands will be present, although they should be simple and focus on basic channel changes and tasks.
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12/18, 8:50pm
Apple TV may go beyond voice with DVR link, motion
New leaks from within Apple's media talks have hinted that the long-rumored Apple TV set may go beyond just voice commands. The sources for the Wall Street Journal had the set responding also to "movements," hinting at a motion system like Microsoft's Kinect or the Nintendo Wii remote. Development has also supposedly been underway for uniting DVR storage with iCloud, hinting that a user might stop watching a regular broadcast TV show on the set itself and then pick it up later on an iPhone or a computer.
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12/14, 3:35pm
Nielsen shows game console usage numbers, bumps
Streaming and video-on-demand on game consoles has seen a sharp increase over the past year, media researcher Nielsen revealed after performing a study in October. Users now spend 14 percent of their time on the Xbox 360, 15 percent on the PS3, and 33 percent on the Wii watching videos from services such as Netflix, Hulu, MLB Network, and ESPN3.
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12/08, 1:15pm
Shigeru Miyamoto not stepping down: Nintendo
Nintendo is vehemently denying reports that its main game designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, is stepping down to a lesser role at the company, said a Thursday report. Miyamoto is responsible for popular franchises like Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda, and his stepping down would not be good news for the company. In an interview with Wired, Miyamoto said he will retire from his current position and work on something small by himself.
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11/29, 6:45pm
Xbox 360 has best week ever, nears 1m in one week
Microsoft on Tuesday marked its best week ever for gaming. The company sold over 960,000 Xbox 360 consoles during Black Friday week, getting its best one-week Xbox hardware sales ever even with a holiday. Over 800,000 of those were sold just on Black Friday itself, and it was one of the top sellers at Best Buy.
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11/20, 11:55pm
Nintendo Wii surged from peak to valley
Yet another game console had an anniversary in the past week as the Nintendo Wii turned five years old on Sunday, just as its creator launched a long-delayed game, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. The company's most successful console by sales launched November 19, 2006 and was an immediate return to form for Nintendo. Most of its first few years were spent in near perpetual shortages, even lasting into early 2010, and led to a total of 88.3 million shipping as of October.
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11/20, 5:25pm
Nintendo Wii blue ready for Walmart
Walmart's flyer for its Black Friday sale [Flash needed] has revealed that it will have an extremely rare blue edition of the Nintendo Wii. The Limited Edition Blue Console bundle has what looks to be the cheaper Wii, minus GameCube support, in the same light blue as Nintendo had previously been using just for an add-on remote. Accordingly, the remote is color-matched to the console; the included Nunchuk controller hasn't been shown, but likely matches as well.
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11/17, 10:45am
Nielsen shows kids, teens want iPad for Christmas
Apple virtually controls what kids want for Christmas this holiday, Nielsen found on Thursday. Among US children aged six to 12, 44 percent wanted an iPad. The company also swept the top three, with the iPod touch at 30 percent and the usually unobtainable iPhone at 27 percent.
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11/16, 9:25pm
PS3 hits 5th anniversary Nov 17 in better spot
Sony on Thursday will mark the fifth anniversary of the PlayStation 3. The system was launched on November 17, 2006, within days of the Nintendo Wii. As of the end of this September, Sony had shipped 55.5 million of the console and will likely have passed 56 million by the anniversary.
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11/15, 3:10pm
Xbox hits 10 years old and gets bonuses
Microsoft kicked off the tenth anniversary of the Xbox with a celebration page and bonuses. Everyone gets access to a free avatar prop for Xbox Live that provides a gift box that opens to reveal fireworks. Some downloadable games will also be on sale as part of the anniversary.
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11/14, 8:35am
Convergence Bridge mixes remote, keyboard, pad
Convergence Technologies is hoping to build a universal remote intended for networked media hubs, not just traditional home theater hardware. The Bridge uses a gamepad-like shape that holds both a joystick to replace the mouse, a full QWERTY keyboard, and buttons for common remote control tasks. The device talks over IR and RF (using RF4CE) and should support Apple TV, the Boxee Box, Google TV, and Roku players, as well as most Macs, Linux, and Windows PCs.
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11/11, 8:50pm
NPD says 3DS at 1.65m sold, Xbox 360 at 393K
New NPD data for October on Friday showed Nintendo recovering some of its pace in mobile but still in a struggle with Apple and Microsoft. The 3DS had reached 1.65 million systems shipped to the US since it reached the country in March and was on track to break the original DS' first-year sales record. With 720,000 units left to go by March 2012, the company expected a rush of holiday sales and the winter to tip the balance.
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11/08, 11:55pm
Nintendo Wii U may get two controllers after all
Nintendo's Wii U might get a much-requested support for two of its signature tablet controllers. A developer executive claimed to Develop that there were clues in the code that it was being readied to support the special, very high speed wireless controllers. The console designer looked like it was "on the cusp" of solving the problems that had led it to at first limit the Wii U to one of the special gamepads.
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11/02, 6:50pm
Nintendo Wii cleared in initial ITC ruling
The US International Trade Commission gave Nintendo a respite late Wednesday after it defeated a patent violation claim by Motiva. An administrative law judge determined that the Wii didn't violate two of Motiva's patents for tracking movement through a controller. As with all ITC cases, the ruling is preliminary and will be reviewed by a Commission panel in March to decide if any of the verdict needs to be overturned.
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10/27, 10:50am
Nintendo to post first annual loss in 30 years
Nintendo has posted a huge loss for the first six months of the fiscal year and expects the first annual loss in more than 30 years. While better than feared, the video game maker netted a loss of ¥70.27 billion ($923 million) in the six-month period ending on September 30, which compares to a loss of ¥2.01 billion yen just a year earlier. This is due to a mixture of factors, including slowing sales of the Wii, a weak global economy, and a comparatively strong yen that is bad for export profits.
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10/25, 11:20am
Youth conditioned to see iPads, iPhones as cool
Apple holds the most popular brands among American youth, at least in terms of electronics, a new Harris Interactive study claims. The market research firm polled people aged eight to 24 to gauge brand equity, as judged by factors including familiarity, quality and interest in buying. Within the categories Apple succeeded in, however, the age span was narrowed to 13 to 24.
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10/21, 9:20am
Nintendo 3DS and Wii to get Hulu Plus streaming
Nintendo wrapped up the week with plans on Friday to add Hulu Plus to the 3DS and the Wii. Both will get the unlimited TV streaming access sometime before the end of the year. Access should cost the same $8 per month as it does elsewhere.
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10/13, 11:20pm
Nintendo crosses 50m DS mark with good 3DS sales
Nintendo saw some hope return to its mobile gaming on Thursday after it crossed a historic milestone. Based on NPD September data, the DS line passed 50 million lifetime sales since its launch in 2004. This helped cement its position as the bestselling game console in history, Nintendo claimed.
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10/13, 7:10pm
Xbox 360 tops US sales again in September
The Microsoft Xbox 360 was the best selling gaming console during the month of September in the US, market research company NPD Group revealed. The company outsold the Wii and PS3, moving 438,000 units, though what the others sold isn't available, as neither Nintendo nor Sony has made the data public. Other than December of last year, Microsoft sold the most consoles for the last 15 of 16 months.
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10/11, 11:40am
Black Wii holiday bundle coming soon for $150
Nintendo has just announced a new Wii holiday bundle that will come to the US, unlike the 2012 London Olympics edition. The bundle centers around a black Wii and matching Wii Remote Plus controller and Nunchuck. It also adds New Super Mario Bros. Wii and an exclusive official soundtrack from Super Mario Galaxy.
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10/11, 10:45am
Blue 2012 Olympics Wii bundle for Europe revealed
To commemorate the hosting of the 2012 Olympics in London, Nintendo will release a special edition Wii gaming bundle. Paired with the Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games game, the blue Wii comes with a blue Wii Remote Plus, a blue Nunchuk, and a sticker sheet. The Wii is the lower-cost Family Edition and doesn't have Wi-Fi or Gamecube support, however.
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10/07, 1:55pm
Xfinity to expand to more consoles, connected TVs
Comcast will bring its Xfinity video-on-demand service to consoles other than just the Xbox 360 as well as other TVs and set-tops. These include Nintendo's Wii and Sony's PS3, as well as LG and Samsung TVs along with the Roku media hub. Comcast Converged Products president Sam Schwartz revealed these plans at a panel on Thursday.
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09/08, 7:50pm
Microsoft claims Xbox 360 leads August 2011
Microsoft claimed one of the longer unbroken video game console sales streaks in recent memory as the Xbox 360 was once more the top-selling console in the US, according to NPD data. August sales bounced back from July's low point and hit 306,000 of the systems. Nintendo added that the 3DS price cut made a meaningful impact and saw sales jump to 235,000, about 185,000 of which were after the August 12 drop to $170.
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08/29, 3:35pm
Nintendo to ship new Zelda game on November 20
To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Zelda franchise, Nintendo has made official the promised The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword game for the Wii. Initial shipments will ship with a The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary Symphony Concert music CD or with the CD and a special gold-colored Wii Remote Plus controller. Either ships in stores on November 20, priced at $50 for the game and CD or $70 for the controller, game and CD combo.
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08/17, 8:55am
Nintendo Wii Family Edition to bow before Wii U
Nintendo is planning a sendoff for the Wii in at least Europe with a new model. The Wii Family Edition has a new, slightly streamlined design meant to sit on its side rather than the vertical layout the Wii has been known for. The design will lower the price to an unknown level and primarily shed support for legacy Gamecube accessories and games, although it will still have both Wii Sports and Wii Party in the box.
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08/16, 5:35pm
Tab offers 12 and under age appropriate videos
Netflix has developed a special area of their Website with content intended for children aged 12 and under. The "Just for Kids" selection can be reached via a special new tab that now appears at the top of the Netflix homepage. Kids can then click on an icon of their favorite character, from SpongeBob SquarePants to Big Bird, and find a large selection of TV shows and movies featuring that character.
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08/11, 7:35pm
Xbox 360 leads July 2011 despite low games
New NPD data has given the Xbox 360 the lead in a market that was the worst since October 2006. Microsoft's console moved 277,000 units in July, just half of what it managed in June, but was still enough to outsell Sony's PS3 and Nintendo's Wii. While NPD didn't have hard data for the other systems, the lead was going to lead to the greatest year in the Xbox's 10-year history, Microsoft said.
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08/11, 8:10am
Nintendo faces pressure to port to iOS
Nintendo has been facing calls Thursday to drop its policy of developing only for its own systems and support the iPhone. Following a steep 3DS price cut to make up for slow early sales, Stats Investment Management fund manager Masamitsu Ohki argued that Nintendo should either "buy its way" into the iPhone's platform or else make something of its own. He along with others is believed to have seen the Pokemon wing's plans for an iPhone game, and Nintendo's refusal to follow suit, as a sign of a disconnect with the mobile strategy.
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07/27, 3:45pm
Nielsen shows split of Netflix and Hulu device use
Netflix and Hulu occupy almost entirely separate camps of digital streaming, Nielsen learned in a study Wednesday. Both are now available on many platforms, but Netflix is the dominant form by a wide margin on non-PC devices, including iPads, game consoles, and Internet-aware media hubs, ranging from a three-to-one ratio on Apple's tablet to seven or eight times higher. Hulu only wins out on computers but often does so by a wide margin, with 89 percent of its viewers watching on a computer versus just 42 percent of Netflix owners wanting to do the same.
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07/14, 8:35pm
NPD June data give Xbox 507K units in huge lead
Microsoft kept up a year-long string of leads with new NPD data giving it the lead in June. About 507,000 Xbox 360s shipped last month, making it not only the top selling game console but giving it a wide lead. The NPD's decision against providing open data made comparisons difficult, but Microsoft in a comment said it sold "nearly twice as many" systems as rivals, with Nintendo's DS or Wii the most likely runner up.
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07/06, 2:00pm
Eedoo iSec console to be sold in China this fall
PC maker Lenovo, through its Eedoo games subsidiary, will begin selling a home entertainment console called iSec in China, a company spokesperson said this week. This news is significant, as the Chinese government has a ban on the sale of games consoles in place and the Lenovo spokesperson hasn't said whether the company's planned product somehow isn't covered by this law or if it has permission to sell it.
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