Zynga to set up its own gaming service outside Facebook

London, Mar 3 (ANI): American game maker company Zynga, which has made games like FarmVille and CityVille is setting up its own gaming service.

It means people will be able to play on a platform outside Facebook, Google+ and Myspace.

Zynga makes its money through advertising and from the sale of virtual items such as tools paid for with real cash.

Most of the company's games have to be played through Facebook, which takes a 30 percent cut from each sale.

Zynga, whose titles have more than 200 million active monthly users, makes 95 percent of its money through Facebook.

It publishes four of the top five games played on the social networking site.

UK games editor at IGN.com Keza MacDonald has said that moving away from Facebook could have significant effects down the line.

"If Facebook game powerhouses like Zynga launch their own platforms rather than hosting games exclusively on Facebook itself, it undermines Facebook's credibility as a gaming platform, which could shift the emphasis on social gaming," the BBC quoted MacDonald as saying.

"The money in social gaming could shift further towards mobile platforms," the games editor said.

The San Francisco-based firm says its re-designed website, which will be launched later this month, will make it easier to play games more quickly with access to live chatting and message board features.

Five of Zynga's top games will be on the new Zynga.com, including CastleVille, CityVille and Words with Friends.

Users will still need to log in using their Facebook IDs and sales from virtual goods in games, such as houses, coffee or other items, will be traded using Facebook Credits, the social website's payment system.

Manuel Bronstein, general manager of Zynga.com, said that the new website did not intend to move users away from Facebook.

"It will help users keep their Facebook profiles separate from their gaming habits while bringing Zynga closer to users," he said.

"If they want to play on Facebook, if they play on mobile, if they play on the web, I want them to be connected to Zynga and it cannot be constrained to one single destination," he added. (ANI)


SOURCE:

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