The possibility of color gameplay, now a reality thanks to the color handsets reaching the market, is another example of the future-proofing built-in to Digital Bridges’ UNITY technology, the de facto standard in mobile entertainment platforms. The first games to be made available to operators will include ‘Wireless Pets’ (already one of the most successful WAP games in the world); ‘Steve Jackson’s Sorcery!’ (recently voted the ‘world’s best wireless game’ by readers of leading mobile entertainment site “Wirelessgamingreview.com”); ‘Star Trek™: First Duty’ (based on the world’s most successful sci-fi television series) and ‘Top Trumps’ (the cult collectible card game, which features game packs such as Dinosaurs, Sports Cars and European Footballers).

The games will be available to all mobile users equipped with color handsets and signed up, via their mobile network operators, to operators taking Digital Bridges’ suite of WAP games. Digital Bridges’ mobile entertainment content is available through multiple operators around the world including, in North America, AT&T Wireless , ALLTEL Communications, Aliant , Bell Mobility, Sprint PCS, TELUS Mobility and VoiceStream Wireless.

“Color gaming is just the next step in a long line of mobile entertainment innovations by Digital Bridges,” said Anders Evju, Vice President and General Manager for Digital Bridges’ North American operations. “From color to WAP Push to Java, expect a whole range of improvements in your mobile entertainment experience from Digital Bridges.”

The launch of services utilising color capabilities is the next step in ensuring that Digital Bridges’ UNITY platform and all of the content published by the company supports and is optimised for the next generation of mobile telecommunications technology, as it evolves from GPRS and Java towards 3G.

Brian Greasley, the CEO of Digital Bridges, said, “Digital Bridges has always been a pioneer in the wireless entertainment industry, demonstrating the world’s first multi-player WAP game in 1999 and the world’s first multi-player Java game in 2000. We are therefore delighted to be launching the first color games commercially available in this part of the world. Entertainment is already a key service in driving mobile usage. The advent of color promises to make it truly mass-market.”