Following on from Apple's announcement of its unified log-in, matchmatching, achievements and leaderboard Game Center service - which will be run through iTunes - thirdparty social gaming networks have been keen to set their respective positions straight.

Marc Gumpinger, CEO of Scoreloop says, "I clearly see the rationale behind Apple's announcement. How could any device manufacturer not want to add social glue by providing some form of social gaming infrastructure?

"It allows Apple to engage and increase its user base by accessing users' friends. Xbox proved that, as did Facebook."

Shoulders of giants

As for the specificities of making money out of social gaming, he's equally bullish about Scoreloop's future.

"Apple positions Game Center around social connectivity, which represents the base layer of Scoreloop's infrastructure. But with our virtual goods architecture and in-game monetisation, Scoreloop's functionalities go far beyond what was announced today. Our infrastructure enables any developer to become the next Zynga - and that on the even bigger scale with billions of handsets in the mobile market," Gumpinger states.

Indeed, in the short term, Scoreloop offers the most complete cross-platform support; currently handling iDevices, Android, Facebook and MySpace, amongst others.

"Let's not forget that the mobile market is fragmented and consists of far more than the iPhone," Gumpinger stresses.

"The chances are high that not all your friends have an iPhone. Some will have an Android, Nokia, BlackBerry, BREW, Samsung or LG device. That means a device-specific platform like the Apple Game Center doesn't allow you to interact with all of your friends. Scoreloop's focus has been cross-platform from the very beginning. We have invested significant efforts outside the iPhone, and now it pays off.

"Scoreloop is already the market leader on Android and we're extending our infrastructure to the other platforms for complete coverage."