Sumner Redstone is moving Viacom into the video game business, just before he rides off into the sunset as chief of one of the world's biggest media companies, which he will soon split between the
current heads of its broadcasting and cable and movie businesses. Slate reports that Redstone recently described the video game biz as "the hottest part of the entertainment industry." However,
Redstone recently turned down a proposal for Viacom to buy Electronic Arts, the world's biggest and most successful video game developer, instead purchasing middling Midway Games, publisher of the
popular Mortal Kombat series game series. The reason? Well, it's unclear why he went with Midway, which is losing money, but Redstone decided to move into the video games category because of the
potential for product placement. As DVR usage continues to grow, advertisers need to find ways to get their brands in front of viewers. Redstone also thinks the video games industry, where the cost of
development continues to go up while retail prices stagnate, needs to find alternative revenue sources as well.
Read the whole story at Slate.com »
