After in-depth communication and negotiation, Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase (Nasdaq stock code: NTES, Hong Kong Stock Exchange stock code: 9999) jointly announced today that starting from the summer of 2024, Blizzard Entertainment’s many game works that are loved by millions of players will gradually return to the mainland China market in accordance with the updated game distribution agreement. This move aims to meet the expectations of the majority of Chinese server players and once again emphasizes the firm commitment of both parties to providing a high-quality gaming experience.
After a year of in-depth discussions and cooperation planning, Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase have successfully reached an agreement to continue to provide high-quality game services to Chinese server players. The updated game publishing agreement will cover all Chinese server games under the previous agreement, including "World of Warcraft", "Hearthstone" and other series based on game universes such as "Warcraft", "Overwatch", "Diablo" and "StarCraft". Based on more than fifteen years of successful cooperation experience, Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase are working intensively on a detailed return plan and will announce more relevant information in due course.
In addition, Microsoft Games and NetEase have also reached an important agreement, aiming to introduce NetEase's new games to Xbox and other platforms, thereby broadening the coverage of the game market and bringing players a more diversified gaming experience.
Johanna Faries, President of Blizzard Entertainment, said: "We are very happy to work with NetEase again to bring an excellent gaming experience to Chinese players. We sincerely thank the Chinese player community for their enthusiastic support of Blizzard games over the years. We will spare no effort to re-present our game world to players with excellent quality and professionalism."
Ding Lei, CEO and Director of NetEase, said: "We celebrate the conclusion of this cooperation and look forward to opening a new chapter based on trust and mutual respect. We will continue to be unswervingly committed to providing our users with more exciting and creative entertainment experiences. We firmly believe that through active collaboration and cooperation between both parties, we will bring more joy to the gaming community."
Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Games, said: "Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase have demonstrated excellent work ability in bringing games back to the Chinese market. Blizzard's game world has been an important part of Chinese players' lives for many years. This cooperation not only returns Blizzard's legendary games to the Chinese market, but also explores how to introduce more new games to the Xbox platform, which fully reflects our commitment to providing more high-quality games to players around the world."
This information comes from the Internet. If there is any infringement, please contact us to delete it!
