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Digital Media: The Butterfly Grid. Presented by: Hao Wang. Commercial and Consumer Opportunity Potential for a Powerful, Industry Transforming Platform. The Battle for the Living Room Gamers stealing market from Cable, DVD What about the Future ?. Content Providers. Gamers.
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Digital Media:The Butterfly Grid Presented by: Hao Wang
Commercial and Consumer OpportunityPotential for a Powerful, Industry Transforming Platform • The Battle for the Living Room • Gamers stealing market from Cable, DVD • What about the Future ? Content Providers Gamers
Online Games will Drive TechnologyEnormous Potential Driven by Consumer Demand • Global video game market is huge and growing: $31 billion in 2003, will spend $60 billion in 2008. • Online games revenue: 5% of industry in 2003; 25% in 2005; 50% in 2008. • Subscription price-points: single game, per month$ 9.95 (The Sims Online, Ultima Online)$12.95 (Asheron’s Call, Dark Age of Camelot, Anarchy Online)$40.00 (Everquest Legends). Online Video Game Market Size Segmented by Platform $BB Online PC Gaming Connected Consoles Mobile Gaming (sources: Mercer Consulting & Accenture)
Service Providers Content Providers Gamers Problem StatementToo Expensive, Too Difficult… • To create • Tough technical challenges. • Not enough talent, experience. • Too much execution risk. • To operate and support • Custom infrastructure, legacy code. • Inefficient use of computing/network. • To play • Each game has a separate monthly fee.
Butterfly.net Optimizes the IndustryA Platform for the Mass Market • Content provider • Plugs into art, animation, physics, 3D engines. • Familiar Linux server API and tools. • Ongoing operations • Supported by service providers. • Common computing and network resource base. • Highly efficient protocol, server. • Consumer services • Targeted game packages. • Single sign-on, roaming, multi-platform, inter-game network. • One integrated, manageable bill. Service Providers Content Providers Gamers
What Butterfly Grid Offer… • Ultimately Reliable • All games on the Grid must be always on, always available. • Infinitely Scalable • No gamer should have to wait in a lobby for room on a server. • Absolutely Secure • Client-side hacks, server vulnerabilities, hijacked connections and other exploits can spoil the fun • Industry Standard • Gamers want reasonably-priced game packages with a single sign-on across multiple properties, integrated voice communications and multi-platform support • High Performance • Gamers would rather complain about incompetent newbies than the frustrations of lag • Maximally Efficient • To the industry, this means more gamers and more profit. • To the gamer, this means more fun for less money Service Providers Content Providers Gamers
Server models The Hierarchical Server Model Client Client Server Client Client Server Server Server Client Client Client Client Server Client Client Client
Server models The Hierarchical Server Model • Advantages: • More scalable than flat server model. • Reduced communications overhead. • Relatively easy to implement • Disadvantages: • As the number of levels in the hierarchy grows, latency between the various parts of the game grows as well. • Consistency maintenance and synchronization are even more difficult, due to this increased latency. • What if the root server goes down?
Server modelsThe Grid Computing Model Client Client Server Server Server Client Client Server Server Server Client Client Client Client Server Server Server Client Client Client
Server models (3)The Grid Computing Model • Advantages: • Can scale to support a large number of players – adding servers to the grid is transparent. • Very reliable – if a server is lost, player load is shifted automatically to a new server. • Consistency and synchronization is handled automatically by the grid software. • Disadvantages: • Very complex grid software required, although standard software is emerging. • Very costly to provide
Multi-tiered, Fully-distributed “Game OS”Maximum efficiency in managing state of of clients, network, servers The Butterfly Grid
The Butterfly Grid: Content Provider ProgramA Complete Package for the Professional Game Developer • Package includes • Client SDK (PC, console, mobile) • Server SDK for Linux (Packaged or Hosted). • Creation tools and 3rd party plug-ins • Commercial, Government, Consumer • Game Developers • Research Institutions
The Butterfly Grid: Service Provider ProgramA Value-Added Service for New Subscription Revenue Streams • Package includes • Butterfly server software suite. • Butterfly game admin apps. • Globus, policy mgt., billing. • Shared Grid or Dedicated • Gamers • Industrial