SHANGHAI, July 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Blizzard
Entertainment, Inc. and NetEase, Inc. today jointly announced an
agreement to license Blizzard Entertainment's award-winning action
role-playing game Diablo®
III to a NetEase, Inc. affiliate in mainland China. This is the fifth Blizzard game series
that the two companies are bringing to mainland China, following
StarCraft® II, World of
Warcraft®,
Hearthstone™: Heroes of
Warcraft™, and Heroes of the
Storm™.
Diablo III continues the epic Diablo storyline, with
players going on a heroic journey to save the world of Sanctuary
from the corrupting forces of the Burning Hells. As players
adventure through rich and varied settings, they'll engage in
pulse-pounding combat with hordes of monsters and challenging
bosses, grow in experience and ability, and acquire artifacts of
incredible power.
"We're excited to be able to welcome the many passionate gamers
in mainland China to Sanctuary,"
said Mike Morhaime, CEO and
cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "We appreciate all the support
Chinese gamers have shown us over the years and hope they have a
great time playing Diablo III."
"We're very excited that with our effort, all five of Blizzard
Entertainment's game series will be delivered to Chinese players,"
said William Ding, CEO and founder
of NetEase, Inc. "We'll continue to work closely with Blizzard to
prepare for a smooth Diablo III launch in China so that local gamers can start playing
this epic adventure as soon as possible."
Diablo III became the fastest-selling PC game of all time
globally when it was first released in 2012, selling through more
than 3.5 million copies as of its first 24 hours of availability
and growing to more than 6.3 million copies as of its first week.*
Since then, the game has gone on to sell through more than 15
million copies across all platforms.* With Chinese players on the
verge of storming through Sanctuary, the forces of evil are in
store for a whole new round of retribution.
More details about the Diablo III launch in China, such as pricing and platform specifics,
will be announced at a later date.
*Based on internal company records and reports from key
distribution partners.
About Blizzard Entertainment
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of
Warcraft®and the Warcraft®,
StarCraft®, and
Diablo®franchises, 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 seventeen #1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year
awards. The company's online-gaming service, Battle.net, is one of
the largest in the world, with millions of active players.
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 online games,
e-mail services, advertising services, mobile applications and
games and web portals. In partnership with Blizzard Entertainment,
NetEase operates some of the most popular international online
games in China, including World of
Warcraft®, Hearthstone™: Heroes of
Warcraft™, and StarCraft®II.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements
Information in this press release that involves Blizzard
Entertainment's and NetEase's expectations, plans, intentions or
strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that
are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties.
These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the
U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Blizzard
Entertainment and NetEase generally use words such as "outlook,"
"will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans,"
"believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate,"
"future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain,"
"scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar
expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that
could cause Blizzard Entertainment's and/or NetEase's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in the
forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but
are not limited to, sales levels of Blizzard Entertainment's titles
generally, the popularity of Diablo III among Chinese
players and the effect of future expansion sets on the game, shifts
in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current
macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the
interactive game market, the risk that Shanghai EaseNet will not be
able to operate Diablo III, Heroes of the Storm, StarCraft II,
World of Warcraft, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft or other games
licensed by it from Blizzard Entertainment for a period of time or
permanently due to possible governmental actions, the risk that
Shanghai EaseNet or NetEase will be subject to penalties or
operating restrictions imposed by governmental authorities in the
PRC resulting from the operations of their online games, including
suspension of their Internet service or other penalties, the risk
that changes in Chinese government regulation of the online game
market may limit future growth of Blizzard's or NetEase's revenue
in China or cause revenue to
decline; industry competition and competition from other forms of
entertainment, rapid changes in technology, industry standards and
consumer preferences, including interest in specific genres such as
real-time strategy, action–role-playing and massively multiplayer
online games, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against
Blizzard Entertainment and/or NetEase, maintenance of relationships
with key personnel, customers, licensees, licensors, vendors and
third-party developers, including the ability to attract, retain
and develop key personnel and developers who can create high
quality "hit" titles, counterparty risks relating to customers,
licensees, licensors and manufacturers, domestic and international
economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign
exchange rates and tax rates, and the identification of suitable
future acquisition opportunities, and the other factors identified
in the risk factors section of Activision Blizzard's most recent
annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on
Form 10-Q and of NetEase's most recent annual report on Form 20-F
and other filings and submissions with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements in this release
are based upon information available to Blizzard Entertainment,
Activision Blizzard and NetEase, as the case may be, as of the date
of this release, and none of such parties assumes any obligation to
update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be
incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future
performance of Blizzard Entertainment, Activision Blizzard or
NetEase and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors,
some of which are beyond their respective control and may cause
actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
For further information contact:
Rob Hilburger
Vice President, Global Communications
Blizzard Entertainment
(+1) 949-242-8404
rhilburger@blizzard.com
Roger Sun
Public Relations Director
Blizzard China
(+86) 21-3133 0700
rsun@blizzard.com
Cassia Curran
NetEase, Inc.
(+86) 571-8985-2076
cassia@corp.netease.com
Brandi Piacente
NetEase Investor Relations
(+1) 212-481-2050
brandi@corp.netease.com
SOURCE NetEase, Inc.