SHANGHAI, Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Blizzard
Entertainment, Inc. and NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) announced
today an extension to their 11-year partnership in mainland
China. The publishing agreement
between the two companies, which encompasses World of
Warcraft®, the StarCraft® series,
the Diablo® series,
Hearthstone®, Heroes of the
Storm® and Overwatch®, will extend
until January 2023.
The collaboration between Blizzard and NetEase began in 2008,
with a licensing agreement to bring StarCraft®
II and the Blizzard Battle.net® platform to
China. Since then, the companies
have worked together to bring Blizzard's epic game experiences to
Chinese players.
"NetEase has been instrumental in helping us bring
Blizzard's epic games to even more players around the world,
and we're grateful to have such a strong partner in
China," said J. Allen Brack, President of Blizzard
Entertainment. "We look forward to continuing our relationship and
cooperation in China and
beyond."
"We're pleased to continue our successful partnership with
Blizzard after more than a decade of close cooperation," said
William Ding, founder and CEO of
NetEase. "The scope of our collaboration is now deeper and broader
than ever before. We're confident that together we will continue to
bring even more exciting game experiences to players
worldwide."
About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of
Warcraft®, Hearthstone®,
Overwatch®, the Warcraft®,
StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises, and the
multi-franchise Heroes of the Storm®, Blizzard
Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision
Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of
entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry's
most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment's track
record includes twenty-two #1 games* and multiple Game of the Year
awards. The company's online gaming service, Blizzard
Battle.net®, is one of the largest online-gaming
services in the world, with millions of active players.
*Sales and/or downloads based on internal company records and
reports from key distribution partners
About NetEase, Inc.
NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) is a leading internet technology
company in China dedicated to
providing online services centered around content, community,
communication and commerce. NetEase develops and operates some of
China's most popular PC-client and
mobile games, and partners with Blizzard Entertainment, Mojang AB
(a Microsoft subsidiary) and other global game developers to
operate some of the most popular international online games in
China. NetEase also operates
Kaola.com and Yanxuan, two e-commerce platforms that cater to the
rising middle-class consumer market in China. In addition, NetEase offers
advertising, e-mail and other services. For more information,
please visit: http://ir.netease.com/.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains statements of a forward-looking
nature. These statements are made under the "safe harbour"
provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. You can identify these forward-looking statements by
terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future,"
"intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements.
The accuracy of these statements, including statements regarding
Blizzard and NetEase's publishing agreement, may be impacted by a
number of business risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated,
including the risks outlined in Activision Blizzard's or NetEase's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. NetEase,
Blizzard and Activision Blizzard do not undertake any obligation to
update this forward-looking information, except as required under
applicable law.
Contact for Media and Investors:
Margaret Shi
NetEase, Inc.
ir@service.netease.com
Tel: (+86) 571-8985-3378
Brandi Piacente
NetEase Investor Relations
brandi@corp.netease.com
Tel: (+1) 212-481-2050
Stevenson Xiang
Sr. PR Manager
Blizzard China
sxiang@blizzard.com
Tel: (+86) 21-3133-0700
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SOURCE NetEase, Inc.