Blizzard Entertainment(R) and NetEase to Introduce StarCraft(R) II and Battle.net(R) Platform into Mainland China

Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. and NetEase.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) today announced an agreement to license Blizzard Entertainment®’s StarCraft® II, Warcraft® III: Reign of Chaos™, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne™, and Battle.net® platform, which provides online multiplayer services for these games, to Shanghai EaseNet Network Technology Limited, an affiliated company of NetEase.com, Inc. Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase have also established a joint venture, which will provide support for the operation of the licensed games and Battle.net platform in China.

“NetEase has been a leader in the Chinese game market, and we look forward to working with them to deliver high-quality entertainment to Chinese gamers,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “This partnership is a sign of our continued commitment to our players in China and to the local industry.”

William Ding, CEO of NetEase, stated, “We’re excited to be partnering with Blizzard Entertainment to bring StarCraft II and Battle.net to China. We hope to combine Blizzard Entertainment’s expertise in developing world-class games with NetEase’s strength in online-game operation in China to bring the best gaming experiences to our players.”

The term of the license will be three years, with a mutual one-year renewal period, commencing from the commercial release of StarCraft II in the PRC. Under the agreements, Shanghai EaseNet will pay a revenue-based royalty over the license period, while NetEase will pay a milestone-based license fee and fund and guarantee certain additional payments and operating expenses in connection with the joint venture.

About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.

Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft® and the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® series, 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 ten #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 users.

About NetEase.com Inc.

NetEase.com, Inc. is a leading China-based Internet technology company that pioneered the development of applications, services and other technologies for the Internet in China. NetEase's online communities and personalized premium services have established a large and stable user base for the NetEase websites. In particular, NetEase provides online game services to Internet users through the licensing or in-house development of massively multiplayer online role-playing games, including Fantasy Westward Journey, Westward Journey Online II, Westward Journey Online III, and TianXia 2.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Blizzard Entertainment’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. Blizzard Entertainment generally uses 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 help identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Blizzard Entertainment’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 of Blizzard Entertainment’s titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Blizzard Entertainment’s ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Blizzard Entertainment’s products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Blizzard Entertainment, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, vendors, and third-party developers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, Activision Blizzard’s success in integrating the operations of Activision Publishing and Vivendi Games in a timely manner, or at all, and the combined company’s ability to realize the anticipated benefits and synergies of the transaction to the extent, or in the timeframe, anticipated. Other such factors include additional risk factors identified in Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Blizzard Entertainment and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Blizzard Entertainment nor Activision Blizzard 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 or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

This press release also contains statements of a forward-looking nature regarding NetEase’s expectations, plans, intentions or strategies that are forward-looking statements 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. 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 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 risks related to uncertainty as to the popularity of the games being licensed by Blizzard or the profitability of the license and joint venture arrangements between NetEase and Blizzard and other risks outlined in NetEase’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. NetEase does not undertake any obligation to update this forward-looking information, except as required under applicable law.

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