July 25th, 2009 by Arjan Olsder Posted in About Us | 1 Comment »
While logging in to our back-end last week, I noticed we have something to celebrate. In July 2004, Ashu Mathura founded MGB. After five years it is still one of the best read resources for mobile gaming professionals.
When Ashu began the blog, there weren't much resources available. Everybody read informa's printed news bulletins and visited moconews or mobileindustry.biz. By the time Ashu handed the blog over to me in 2005, ME launched and I think even PocketGamer and QuicklyBored where around already.
Meanwhile, the landscape has changed a lot. A lot of the old companies like Bluesphere Games and Overloaded passed away and many companies shifted to alternative platforms like XBLA or online games. At some point there was even so much news that we chose not to cover regular releases any more as we got 175 of them per week! Needless to say there is enough to keep writing news stories on a daily basis for years to come.
As five years is a long time for a website, we have asked our readers what they think about MGB's anniversary.
“Congrats on the big Five-Oh! In our industry, five years is a lifetime and MBG has evolved and maintained its relevance. I appreciate how well-organized and tightly-edited MGB continues to be.
Looking forward to five more” – Trip Hawkins, CEO Digital Chocolate“HandyGames wishes MGB all the best for its 5th anniversary! MGB is the daily source of information for the whole mobile games industry. MGB does not just copy/paste news and stories – it digs deeper than others. So let us altogether celebrate the 5 years! Keep up the outstanding work for the whole market, Arjan! We think, you should be rewarded by any organization for your hard work and passion.” – Christopher Kassulke, CEO HandyGames
"Big Congratulations of doing such a great news-hunting job in the mobile games industry. I read the MGB daily before I read most other newsletters. The information given is covering exactly what interests me most. The format is easy to read and informative. Where I put most newsletter emails in a mailbox folder called 'To read somewhen', your MGB is a quick snack of information I consume immediately once I receive it. I wish you good luck further on, and keep up the fantastic work!" – Michael Haberl, CEO Xendex
“I’ve personally followed MGB as far back as Arjan’s days with Overloaded and it makes for an up to date and concise read regards all things concerning the mobile entertainment industry. MGB keeps it’s finger firmly on the pulse of the mobile industry and prints the news stories that matter and further enlighten many of us in the business on a daily basis. I congratulate MGB on it’s 5th birthday and look forward to the next 5 years as one of it’s avid readers and supporters.” – Adrian Cummings, CEO Mobile Amusements
“MGB was always a great source of information for me when I worked as a content editor for a Mobile Games site. After the business moved on to other things, I kept up the subscription, so I could still be informed of what’s happening in the mobile games world.” – Wesley Hollander, Web Store Manager Blick
“The MobileGamesBlog continues to be a relevant, insightful and fresh place to read about the real dealings of the mobile games industry. We look forward to many more years of success for both mobile gaming and MGB! Happy 5th birthday Arjan and MBG from the team at Tag Games.” – Paul Farley, CEO TAG Games
"MobileGamesBlog is one of the best sources of up to the minute mobile industry news as it effects gaming and apps. Keep up the fantastic coverage Arjan." – Michael Chang, CEO Greystripe
Alot has changed in 5 years and MGB is still my favorite mobile gaming news source. Many of my clients were found by reading MGB and those relationships remain strong. The TV channel is also very entertaining and relaxing!