Game Network

Game Network is an Italian company, based in Rome, and is part of the larger Digital Bros. group. They provide pay to play online games as well as run their own television channel. It is the only television channel in Europe dedicated to covering multimedia entertainment, naturally focussing on video games.

Game Network developed the massively multiplayer online role-playing game The Myth of Soma . They also have a contract with Wemade Entertainment, to provide The Legend of Mir 2 in Europe, as well as another contract with Artifact Entertainment , to provide Horizons: Empire of Istaria.

Both The Legend of Mir 2 and The Myth of Soma have been moderately successful in Europe, although the number of Mir 2 subscribers pale in comparison to their Chinese and South Korean counterparts. Game Network has been criticised by the player base in both of these games for not doing enough to prevent cheating and bug exploiting, as well as having extremely poor customer service. This may be why the contract to provide The Legend of Mir 3 was signed with UK-based Quality Games Online rather than Game Network.

There was a weekly television show for both The Legend of Mir 2 and The Myth of Soma, which were used to attract new people to the games. Both have since been cancelled, however.

While the channel broadcasts all over Europe, many countries overlay their own, regional content to the channel, such as in the UK, SMS chat. This balooned in 2003 with the launch of BabeStation, a late-night "tease" show, essentially webcam girls on television. The success of this show lead to many other clone programmes appearing on other channels, and this alternative revenue stream lead to a later influx of phone-in quiz shows, of which Game Network shows many of. Game Network's UK games programming is now (2005) largely limited to a block of raw games footage at 5:30AM, followed by phone-in quizzes from 10AM, which continue until BabeStation starts.

External links

• Game Network Italia
• Game Network UK