‘Angry Birds’ Creator Releases Movie Cast, Fires Employees

Rovio, the creator of Angry Birds, is reportedly slashing approximately 130 jobs even as it releases the first look at the Angry Birds movie, which is due for release two summers from now. The concurrent moves are causing speculation that the company isn’t seeing the amount of success for the movie and other products it had hoped for. On Thursday, it seems a Rovio CEO admitted as much.

The first Angry Birds app was created for Apple devices in 2009, and has since grown and been made available for other phones and additional platforms. It’s been seen as one of the most popular mobile gaming apps of the decade, and toys and clothing based on the characters are also popular.

Now, a movie based on the game is in the works, and the cast list has just been released to the public. KDrama Stars reports that the animated Angry Birds is due for release on July 1, 2016, and boasts such names as Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage and Saturday Night Live alum Jaason Sudeikas, Bill Hader, and Maya Rudolph in the voice cast.

The first peek at some imagery from the Angry Birds movie was also shared this week.

1 billion slings in only 48 hours. The #AngryBirdsMovie cast and image reveal was unlocked by fans – A WORLD FIRST! pic.twitter.com/sYCedog9ku

— Rovio (@Rovio) October 1, 2014

Despite Angry Birds being a top-rated paid app, and the success of other products and anticipation for the Angry Birds movie, in a blog post on Thursday, the company announced it would be cutting up to 16 percent of its workforce, firing as many as 130 employees.

The post explains that hiring was done with expectations of a higher rate of growth than the Angry Birds creators actually saw, and indicates a sadness for the firings.

CNET notes that the company saw profits of nearly $ 34 million in 2013, which may sound like a massive number, but is actually less than half of the profit the company behind Angry Birds made in the previous year.

Facing decreased profits, it’s little wonder the company decided to cut costs. They say they’ll be focusing more on three key areas: games, media, and consumer products.

Angry Birds has faced difficulties before now, such as when there were rumors that the NSA was using it to spy on gamers, and when concerns were raised that some hacked or faked versions might contain malware to rip off users.

The Angry Birds movie has an exciting cast, but with release still nearly two years in the future, Rovio might have made a wise move in scaling back until profits return to previous summits.

[photo credit: Harshit Sekhon via photopin cc, Twitter]

‘Angry Birds’ Creator Releases Movie Cast, Fires Employees is an article from: The Inquisitr News

The Inquisitr News » Gaming

‘Angry Birds’ Creator Releases Movie Cast, Fires Employees

Delicate and light: The best wines for seasonal suppers

OUR expert chooses lighter wines to serve with seasonal suppers
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Delicate and light: The best wines for seasonal suppers

'Giddy highs and sickening lows': More Fool Me by Stephen Fry review

STEPHEN FRY’s third autobiography paints a picture of an extremely busy, but often lonely life
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Chelsea 2 - Arsenal 0: Costa, Fabregas and Hazard outgun Wenger at Stamford Bridge

GOALS from Diego Costa and Eden Hazard, plus an exquisite assist by ex-Gunner Cesc Fabregas, helped Chelsea to a comfortable 2-0 win over Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
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Chelsea 2 - Arsenal 0: Costa, Fabregas and Hazard outgun Wenger at Stamford Bridge

Fantasy House Of The Month: Grand Gothic inspired home

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Well meaning but unexciting: Dolphin Tale 2 review and trailer

THIS well meaning but rather dull sequel, following the adventures of Winter the dolphin, fails to make a real splash
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Tesco chief axes private jet fleet

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Tesco chief axes private jet fleet

Usain nips out for a quick pint with Tina Turner at Oktoberfest

THE fastest man in lederhosen joined Tina Turner for an Olympic drinking session at this year’s Oktoberfest in Germany.
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Usain nips out for a quick pint with Tina Turner at Oktoberfest

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Hewlett-Packard will reportedly split into two companies

Above: The new HP Stream series laptops, announced last week

Image Credit: HP

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The legendary Hewlett-Packard reportedly is about to become two companies.

One will focus on the firm’s personal computer and printer business, and the other on its business hardware and services, according to a story in today’s Wall Street Journal.

The publication, citing “people familiar with the matter,” said the split may be made public as early as tomorrow.

The Journal said that current CEO Meg Whitman will become CEO of the enterprise-oriented company, and independent director Patricia Russo will be chairman. Whitman will serve as chairman of the PC/printer firm, and exec Dion Weisler will be CEO.

HP has been struggling with its dual selves of being oriented toward businesses’ high-end needs and toward personal computers and printers. Various company executives have in the past discussed spinning off its PC unit, only to be followed by the company asserting its long-term interest in PCs.

In 2000, Agilent Technologies split off from HP, taking with it the test and measurement equipment business that was HP’s first line of business.

The company had long reigned as the top PC maker in the world, although it dropped to second place last year in the rankings of industry research firm IDC, after Lenovo. Its printer/personal systems group rakes in about $ 56 billion in fiscal 2013, about half the company’s total, but sales are down about seven percent from the previous year.

Via the Wall Street Journal

J im Hood, VP Engineering Jim Hood brings to SpectraSwitch over 34 years of engineering experience in the telecommunications industry.Prior to joining SpectraSwitch, he was VP of Engineering at Onix Microsystems where he was directing… read more »

VentureBeat

Hewlett-Packard will reportedly split into two companies

Sesame Street‘s Twilight Parody is An Oddly Appropriate Way To Learn About Self-Control - Bella your blood smells like COOOOOOOOOOKIES

I mean, when you take out all the thinly veiled domestic abuse narratives and concerns about immortality and soullessness, deep down the series is really about a guy who can’t handle not eating something (or someone) he really wants to eat, right? Also, props to the lady muppet who stars alongside Cookie Monster; she’s got Bella’s flat affect down to a science.

Previously in Sesame Street

• We Couldn’t Possibly Say No To A Cookie Monster Star Wars Parody


• Sesame Street Knows You’re a Giant Nerd, Introduces Muppet Captain Kirk and Doctor Who


• How Do You Make Dirty, Dirty, True Blood Appropriate For Sesame Street?

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Sesame Street‘s Twilight Parody is An Oddly Appropriate Way To Learn About Self-Control - Bella your blood smells like COOOOOOOOOOKIES

Would You Sign Over Your First Born For Free Wi-Fi? Apparently Some Britons Did

Being tethered to internet has now become more of a necessity. The need to stay constantly connected to a high speed reliable internet connection is more of a basic need. However, would you be willing to sign over the custody of your child in lieu of receiving access to wireless internet?

An experiment by a tech security firm had users signing away their first born for free Wi-Fi. Several Britons agreed to give up their eldest child in return for the use of free wireless internet, in an experiment to highlight the dangers of public internet.

F-Secure, an online security services and software company, conducted a simple experiment at two different venues, and surprisingly the results were quite consistent, reported Yahoo News. Essentially, Londoners were asked to agree to “Terms and Conditions” as they logged on to use free Wi-Fi in a cafe in a busy financial district, which is close to the houses of parliament.

The terms specially included a “Herod clause,” which categorically stated, “The Wi-Fi password will be provided only if the recipient agrees to assign their first born child to us for the duration of eternity.”

Since the people more often than not blindly and blatantly tick the “I Agree” button, F-Secure later said, “As this is an experiment, we will be returning the children to their parents. The experiment was aimed to highlight the total disregard for computer security by people when they are mobile.”

The device used in the experiment was quite unique, just like the clause. German ethical hacking company SySS built the device used in the study: a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot small enough to be carried in a handbag for around $ NZ308, reported Phys.

In just 30 minutes, over 250 devices connected to the hotspot. However, in their defense, majority of the people had their devices connecting automatically owing to their setting for the Wi-Fi. Still, these users had to agree to the seemingly ridiculous T&C, and about six people readily did so.

Besides proving that people will ignore the T&C, the experiment also proved how easy it was to snoop into the digital lives of people by luring them with free Wi-Fi. The company was able to collect the text of emails they sent, the email addresses of the sender and recipient, and the password of the sender too.

The head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Center previously told researchers that they already had reports of criminals using free Wi-Fi to steal personal data.

[Image Credit | Impactlab.net]

Would You Sign Over Your First Born For Free Wi-Fi? Apparently Some Britons Did is an article from: The Inquisitr News

The Inquisitr News » World

Would You Sign Over Your First Born For Free Wi-Fi? Apparently Some Britons Did

WWE: Less Brock Lesnar Should Equal More Midcard Champions

According to various online reports, WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar is not currently scheduled for another appearance with WWE through the end of the year. Naturally, that has a lot of people in an uproar. WWE is already having to cover Lesnar’s absence at Hell in a Cell with the blowoff of the Dean Ambrose/Seth Rollins feud and the idea of not having another WWE World Heavyweight Title defense until Royal Rumble in January is definitely cause for concern.

Still, this can be seen as a glass half-full situation. Boxing and UFC don’t see their World Champions defending once a month or even once every two months. Because the World Titles in those sports are defended less often, each defense means more. WWE could benefit from the less-is-more theory in this instance, especially given Lesnar’s booking as the “real guy” with his UFC background.

While it’s not likely that Lesnar is going to be MIA all the way through January, WWE fans, as of this writing, shouldn’t expect to see too much more of the WWE World Heavyweight Champion in 2014. This is where WWE should take advantage.

If the World Champion is going to be scarce for the remainder of the year, it opens an interesting opportunity for WWE to push its mid card titles. Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler is in the midst of a hot potato title feud with The Miz and United States Champion Sheamus is fresh off an incredible title defense against Cesaro at Night of Champions.

If Brock Lesnar isn’t going to be at the forefront for the next three months, Sheamus and Ziggler should be. WWE has three hours of TV to fill on Monday alone and the show is already saturated with recaps and replays and filler. If WWE is smart, they’ll be using that time to feature the IC and US titles.

In years past, the Intercontinental and US titles were called “workhorse titles”. The titles were usually held by up and coming stars and strong ring-workers. Guys who may not be selling millions of dollars of merchandise on WWEShop but are putting on 10-15 minute wrestling clinics each time they’re in the ring. Winning the Intercontinental or US Title also once meant that a Superstar was only one step below being WWE or World Heavyweight Champion. With only one World title to go around, as opposed to having two in years past, that desire to ascend to the number one spot should be even more fierce.

While seeing Sheamus and Ziggler in tag matches together is entertaining, WWE should be pitting them against each other. While both are crowd favorites, neither should be complacent with just being second best. From a logical standpoint, Sheamus and Ziggler should be beating each other up in an attempt to prove which one of them is truly deserving of being the next contender to Brock’s WWE title.

Of course, that was a different era. Pro wrestling has changed a lot. WWE has changed just as much. It’s been a long time since the IC and US titles have truly meant anything. But if the WWE Champion is going to be occupying the bench, it’s time for the mid card champions to step up.

This also can’t just be WWE’s responsibility. As long as Sheamus and Ziggler are the champions, they need to be doing everything they can to maximize their minutes and putting on matches folks go home talking about. They did it at Night of Champions and can do it again at Hell in a Cell. For as much grief as fans like to give WWE Creative, the writers can’t do all the work.

WWE Hall of Famer Curt “Mr. Perfect” Hennig had a habit of getting himself over, even if he wasn’t the one getting pushed. While Shawn Michaels won the Royal Rumble match in 1995, Mr. Perfect managed to keep the cameras on him throughout his time in the match by selling like crazy and maximizing his minutes.

The WWE has a unique opportunity to turn a negative into a positive with this situation. If they can’t rely on Brock to sell the WWE Network and the PPVs through the end of 2014, they need to trust and rely on their midcard champions. There was a time, though long ago, that every title in WWE meant something. Even the WWE Hardcore Championship was held in a certain regard. It’s been too long since that’s been the case and, with some luck and savvy, WWE can make that a reality again by January.

WWE: Less Brock Lesnar Should Equal More Midcard Champions is an article from: The Inquisitr News

The Inquisitr News » Sports

WWE: Less Brock Lesnar Should Equal More Midcard Champions

These Hilarious Photos Of Dogs ‘Confessing’ Will Make You Crack Up For Sure

Dogs have always been a curious breed, just like cats. While cats mostly destroy potted plants and upholstery, dogs have a much broader spectrum of wanton destruction. While both the species may not do it with an ill-intention, the end results are never what the owner of the house and the pet would want to witness and in many cases, clean-up. Scolding the dogs may work, but that doesn’t offer the much-need satisfaction. Hence these owners went a step ahead and snapped photos of these guilty dogs with ‘confessions’ of the crime they are guilty of.

I Am Sure No One Wants To See Such A Rainbow

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At Least The Owner Attempted To Think From The Dog’s Perspective

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A Designer Dog!

That’ Is One Sneaky And Greedy Dog

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Does That Round Cushion Shame The Dog Into Staying Indoors?

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What An Active Dog!

That’s Just Mean

Dogs can and will be naughty. After all, they are fast learners and have masters who are, well, masters of the art of deception & conceit. Exasperated owners might not have managed to teach these guitly dogs any lesson by shaming them over a social media platform, but they must have surely won appreciation from other pet owners who must have suffered similarly.

All Images Credit | Facebook

These Hilarious Photos Of Dogs ‘Confessing’ Will Make You Crack Up For Sure is an article from: The Inquisitr News

The Inquisitr News » Odd + Funny

These Hilarious Photos Of Dogs ‘Confessing’ Will Make You Crack Up For Sure

New Video Game Releases For The Week Of October 5, 2014

The new video game releases for the week of October 5, 2014 are here and if you thought you were poor after last week’s games, hold onto your wallets as there are a lot of games that are vying for your attention (and money) this week.

Alien: Isolation is leading the charge for this week’s list of new video games. Developed by Creative Assembly, the studio behind the popular Total War series, the game is breaking new ground for the studio as they attempt to undo some of the damage done by the just plain awful Aliens: Colonial Marines from Gearbox. Alien: Isolation deviates from previous entries into the franchise by only featuring one Xenomorph that can not be killed. This requires the player, as the daughter of Ellen Ripley, to use stealth and misdirection to survive against an Alien that has been programmed to be completely random in its hunts. This makes it impossible to find a pattern in the creature’s behavior and as a result, hopefully creating a terrifying experience for the player.

PlayStation Plus members will also be happy for this week’s list of new video games as it features DriveClub. The game features 11 tracks and 10 cars for free for subscribers to PS Plus with the option to upgrade to the full game for a discounted price. Originally a launch game for the PlayStation 4, the title has been pushed back for various reasons and is making its debut almost a year past its time.

Other titles of note this week are NBA2k 15, Skylanders Trap Team, and the latest game from Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi Terra Battle, a free to play iOS and Android title. Our complete list of new video games can be found below.

New Video Game Releases for the Week of October 5, 2014

Alien: Isolation
Retail | Digital
PlayStation 4 | PlayStation 3 | Xbox One | Xbox 360 | PC

Art of Balance
Digital
Wii U

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (Virtual Console – GBA)
Digital
Wii U

Divekick: Addition Edition
Digital (Cross Buy)
PlayStation 4

Dust: An Elysian Tail
Digital
PlayStation 4

Driveclub
Retail | Digital
PlayStation 4

Final Fantasy XIII
Digital
PC (Steam)

Jet Car Stunts
Digital (Cross Buy)
PlayStation 3 | PS Vita

NBA 2K15
Retail | Digital
PlayStation 4 | PlayStation 3 | Xbox One | Xbox 360

Pix The Cat
Digital (Cross Buy)
PlayStation 4 | PS Vita

Project Spark
Retail | Digital
Xbox One

Ryse: Son of Rome
Digital (Steam)
PC

Skylanders Trap Team
Retail | Digital
PlayStation 4 | PlayStation 3 | Xbox One | Xbox 360 | Wii | Wii U | 3DS | iOS | Android

Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition
Retail | Digital
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | PC

Spelunky
Digital (Cross Buy)
PlayStation 4

Strider 2 (PSOne Classic)
Digital
PlayStation 3 | PS Vita

Styx: Master of Shadows
Digital
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | PC

Tenkai Knights: Brave Battle
Retail
3DS

Terra Battle
Digital
iOS | Android

Image Source | Mistwalker

New Video Game Releases For The Week Of October 5, 2014 is an article from: The Inquisitr News

The Inquisitr News » Gaming

New Video Game Releases For The Week Of October 5, 2014