Telstra launches Games Shop

Telstra BigPond, has launched a new games downloading service, Games Shop, aimed at generating new traffic over its broadband network.

BigPond Games Shop allows customers to trial most games for up to 60 minutes, before purchase is required. If users decide not to purchase the game, then it will be automatically deleted.

If they wish to continue and buy the game, prices range from $9.95 to $99.95 with a 20 percent discount for BigPond members, said Middleton.

Middleton claimed the games could take between a few minutes for a five MB game to download on a 256K broadband speed, or two hours for an eight GB game, downloaded via a 10MB cable connection.

Games Shop will launch with a number of games releases available for pre-order including NeverWinter Nights 2, Titan Quest, Test Drive Unlimited, Company of Heroes, Reservoir Dogs, and Bratz: Rock Angelz.

Middleton said the games would be protected from piracy via use of Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology.

Should a customer have a legitimate reason for reinstalling a purchased game, such as upgrading their PC or having a file crash, the site will accommodate a limited number of reloads at no extra charge.

"If you burn the download to a disk, you can lend it to friends who can experience the 60 minute trial and then purchase the game,” he said.

Games Shop was the latest in BigPond's suite of online entertainment and games offerings, including BigPond Movies and its gaming rental service, GameNow and its online gaming portal, GameArena.