This talk proposed at ETech 2006 seems to be very appealing to my interest: Putting the Fun in Functional: Applying Game Design to Mobile Services by Amy Jo Kim:

obile games are becoming a big business. But on the horizon, there's an even more exciting opportunity to develop compelling mobile services that help people get things done--services like restaurant reviews, weather reports, stock quotes, diet support, and meal planners. Developers who are interested in building these services can learn a lot from game design.

In this session, we'll review the psychology and system thinking behind game design, and learn how to use game mechanics to create a mobile experience that's fun, compelling, and addictive. We'll conclude by showcasing some cutting-edge mobile services from Europe and Asia that incorporate these ideas and show us what future mobile applications will look like.

Why do I blog this? This is the approach we have at the lab and the one that I try to promote when working with video game companies. I am looking forward to see what she says about it when it comes to mobile games.