The California State Assembly approved legislation to limit children’s access to extremely violent video games, now only needing the signature of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to become law. Assembly Bill (AB) 1179, formerly AB 450, calls for ending the sale and rental of violent video games that depict serious injury to human beings in a manner that is especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel, to persons who are under 18 years of age.

Electronic Arts and the GRAMMY Foundation today announced GRAMMY Pro Session: Video Game Music And Sound Design. The GRAMMY Foundation's Pro Session series gives students an insider's view into careers in the music industry.

Video Mods airs a brand new episode on MTV2, Friday, August 26th at 10:30 PM ET. By mixing some of today’s most popular video games and characters with the latest music videos and artists, each episode of Video Mods represents a breakthrough in entertainment by providing an entirely new experience for music and video game fans alike.

Most studies done on violence and video games support the conclusion that violent video games can increase aggressive behavior in children and adolescents, especially boys, researchers said on Friday. An analysis of 20 years of research shows the effects can be both immediate and long-lasting.

A study revealed today that retail sales of U.S. video games hardware, software and accessories jumped up by 21 percent in the first six months of the year, as the popularity of handheld devices offset a decline in aging game consoles.

The computer and video game industry will file a lawsuit today seeking to prevent implementation of Illinois HB 4023, a bill limiting the sale and rental of computer and video games, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) announced today. Joining in the complaint are the Video Software Dealers Association and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. In similar cases in St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Washington State, virtually identical bills were struck down.

Konami today announced a multi-year agreement with FremantleMedia Licensing Worldwide, co-producer and licensor of American Idol, that gives the company the exclusive interactive video game rights for American Idol.

New results from Phoenix Marketing International indicate that recent news stories about video games are having some impact with regards to consumers' purchase choice of video game software. PhoenixMI conducted a qualitative and quantitative study to gauge consumer reaction about the slew of news events concerning video game violence and pornography.

Hollywood's bitterly divided actors union, the Screen Actors Guild, rejected on Tuesday a recently negotiated contract with the video game industry, but the vote was unlikely to have any effect since most games are produced with non-union talent.

A bill before the California Assembly to ban the sale of violent video games has been shelved because of a lack of support and therefor Assemblyman Leland Yee has deactivated his bill, for the time being, after failing to muster enough votes for it to pass the full Assembly.

Lawmakers voted Saturday to ban the sale of violent or sexually explicit video games to minors in Illinois, a move other states and cities have tried but federal courts have repeatedly struck down.

Students from eight universities in four countries are working together to design settings for Descent to the Underworld, which re-imagines the Orpheus myth.

She used to play poker and bridge with her 80-year-old girlfriends almost every night. Sometimes until four o’clock in the morning. And, her passion was shooting “craps” while on casino junkets. That is, until Billy Mitchell delivered a Q*bert arcade video game to her house.

The video game industry has been in talks with actors unions for quite some time now, but when talks broke down last December it has become clear that unions are leaning towards their only alternative, striking. The breakdown was over ongoing payments to actors and actresses for each copy of a game sold to which they contribute their voices and likenesses, while the game publishers want to stick to one payment up-front.

Marie Sylla, Director of Government Relations & Counsel made a statement, "We are pleased that the California House Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism and Internet Media did vote out A.B. 450, the Yee bill which prohibits the sale of certain types of video games. It is evident that most of the committee members recognized the obvious flaw with the legislation - that it is wholly unconstitutional. However by no means do we consider this vote against Yee's bill a win for the industry, as it is likely that Assemblyman Yee will push for reconsideration on his bill. Retailers are making their best efforts to ensure that their stores are complying with their policy of carding for 'Mature' rated games and would like to be given the same opportunity as the movie theater owners and music retailers."

Video Games Live features music from some of the biggest video games performed by top orchestras and choirs across the country combined with video footage, lasers, lights and live action to create an explosive and unique entertainment experience. The national tour launches this summer at the world famous Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on July 6.

According to NPD Group, total U.S. sales of video game hardware, software and accessories rose 23 percent in the first quarter of 2005 to more than $2.2 billion The sharp increase was mainly due to the launch of PSP and NDS handhelds, and software wise the best selling product was Sony's PS2 title Gran Turismo 4, with 1.1 million copies sold. The $10 billion U.S. video game industry is keeps steady in comparison with the domestic movie box office sales.

Video game sales rose 32 percent in the United States in March, analysts said on Friday, noting Sony's top-selling "Gran Turismo 4" racing game as well as an improved supply of console hardware.

As a follow-up to our SAG vs. publishers article from earlier this week, representatives of the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and a group of video game publishers have agreed to extend the current interactive agreements to May 13, 2005. Discussions on successor interactive agreements are continuing. A press blackout remains in effect (thanks Blues). By extending the previous agreement, which expired last Friday, an immediate strike was avoided.

A contract between video game developers and unionized actors lending their voices to video games is set to expire on Friday, and no new contract has been agreed upon, leaving open the possibility of actors on strike. The Screen Actors Guild and AFTRA are in negotiations with a group of major videogame publishers, all of which have come to rely on union talent for increasingly cinematic videogames. Since videogame revenue rivals that of the box office, SAG wants a piece of the pie, and a strike could affect actors such as Clint Eastwood, Vin Diesel, or even Marlon Brando in EA's The Godfather. Read the full article over at Variety...

Fox News is reporting that Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola is not happy with Paramount and EA regarding the upcoming video game based on his Mafia trilogy. In an interview that will air coming Sunday 11 AM EDT on AMC's 'Sunday Morning ShootOut, Coppola says "I had absolutely nothing to do with the game and I disapprove, I think it's a misuse of film." Coppola does not like the way the characters are being portrayed and the game ends up being nothing but a shootout. To top it all off Coppola claims he never gave, nor was asked, permission to make a video game out of the movie(thanks VE3D.com).

JoWooD and WorthPlaying are offering Stargate fans (male or female) the opportunity to appear in the upcoming Stargate SG-1: The Alliance video game and be immortalized as a supporting character. Stargate SG-1: The Alliance will be an action-based game playable in the first- or third- person perspective. The game uses a heavily modified and graphically enhanced Unreal 2.5 engine, and fans of the series will immediately recognize certain areas from the TV show. Head on over to our freshly-launched World of StarGate fan site to enter!

The National Basketball Association on Tuesday signed long-term video game licensing deals with not one, but no less than five publishers, bucking the recent trend of sports leagues making exclusive arrangements with a single company. Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive, Midway Games, Sony Corp and Atari Inc., all current NBA partners, signed new deals with the league.

Niko Partners today announced that the videogame market in China is experiencing rapid growth, particularly in the online games segment. According to a new report released by the company, online games revenue is forecast to reach $2.0 billion by 2009. Additionally, China had 28.8 million gamers in 2004 and Niko Partners projects that number to grow to 55.5 million gamers by 2009.

U.S. sales of video games rose 13 percent in February, analysts said today, driven by the release of the hotly anticipated driving game Gran Turismo 4 and continued strength of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.