Toys
Nov. 17, 2022, 11:56 a.m
Blizzard has announced that it will not renew its licensing agreement with China’s NetEase. This means withdrawing from China and leaving fans without new games, services and support.
Image source: Blizzard Entertainment
And the
Blizzard Entertainment has made a controversial decision regarding Chinese gamers. The company will not renew the licensing agreement with NetEase Games, thus ending the collaboration that has lasted since 2008. The decision actually means withdrawal from the domestic market. Blizzard products like Monitoring 2 if World of Warcraft: DragonflightAnd the It will be released in China as planned, but sales, services (including support), and new releases will be suspended starting January 23rd.
Not a big loss
Blizzard Entertainment argues its decision, among other things, the impossibility of reaching an agreement with the Chinese side. It must be admitted that the Middle Kingdom has never grown into one of the main markets for the American company, which can be seen quite clearly Activision Blizzard’s financial results for the third quarter of this year. Sales in China accounted for only 3% of the total revenue generated. This means that withdrawing from this market will not be a painful experience for the company.
strong words
NetEase Collaboration Head Simon Zhu spoke about this issue. On Twitter, he fondly recalls the thousands of hours he spent at m.in. in World of Warcraft. In the end, he reprimanded that one day it would be possible to find out what happened behind the scenes of the case. He used the term “jerk” — according to Tom Warren of The Verge, he meant Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, implying that the whole situation was his fault.
Sadness and regret
NetEase’s official statement sounded the same. The representatives argue that they have made every effort to extend the licensing agreement with Blizzard Entertainment. In its announcement, NetEase also indicates this Immortal Diablo It is a game developed by both entities, so it should not be pulled from China. There are also the first sounds that the company notices 14% decrease in value. Therefore, the situation is not so colorful for both NetEase and Chinese gamers associated with several Blizzard productions.
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