Round-Up: Infogrames CFO Removed, Xbox Live Free Weekend, PC Market Update

Today's news round-up includes news of Infogrames terminating Chief Financial Officer Thierry Dettloff, the Verizon Sponsored Free Xbox Live Gold Weekend, and the negligible impact of Vista's delay on the PC market, as well as the latest posts from GameSetWatch, product news and Gamasutra job postings. - Infogrames today announced that it has terminated the employment contract of Chief Financial Officer Thierry Dettloff with immediate effect during his trial period. Dettloff, who was appointed to the position of CFO on November 23, 2005, was to work on the development of a worldwide financial management and internal control system intended to provide Infogrames with the resources necessary to return to profitability. The company did not release a statement as to the reason for his termination. - From March 31 through April 2, Verizon and Microsoft will host a 72-hour marathon of gaming over Xbox Live for the Xbox 360 wherein players will be able to sign onto Xbox Live and take advantage of what the Xbox Live Gold Membership offers, free of charge. The weekend will play home to several online events, such as the ability to challenge Kamal from The Roots in NBA 2K6, play Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter with members of the game's development and marketing teams, and take on Xbox insiders to College Hoops 2K6, Bankshot Billiards 2 and Fight Night Round 3 for prizes. In addition, Verizon will be giving away One Million Microsoft Points to players, which can be used over Xbox Live to purchase Xbox Live Marketplace digital downloadable content. - While Microsoft has opted to delay the release of its latest Windows Operating System, Vista, analyst firm IDC does not see this decision as having a sweeping impact on the PC market. While purchases are expected to show through 2006, they should pick back up in the new year. "Some consumers will certainly delay PC purchases until Vista is available, but we expect the delay to shift only moderate volume from the fourth quarter of 2006 into 2007 and will not cause a loss of sales," explained Loren Loverde, director of IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. "The timing of the release will have some impact on when consumers buy, but not so much on whether or not they buy. In addition, we expect Microsoft and PC manufacturers to adjust their marketing and upgrade options to appeal to consumers in the fourth quarter even though the new OS is won't be ready. Instead of a dramatic effect on PC shipment volumes, the delay will probably have a larger impact on PC vendor and Microsoft marketing efforts that will need to be adjusted to fit the release schedule, and that will add complexity and cost." - The latest updates on Gamasutra sister weblog GameSetWatch include a bit on recent products released by indie publishers, the launch of GameVideos.com, an increasingly competitive (yet still friendly) competition over at JayIsGames, a look at video game ads that want you to die, and finally a new Christian-themed game that has you collecting tokens to learn about the 'Saint Of The Month'. - Also updated today: product news, featuring Vicon's release of iQ 2.5, as well as the latest Gamasutra job postings, featuring openings from Day 1 Studios, Electronic Arts, High Moon, and LucasArts.