Shanghai—In a significant development for the gaming industry, China’s NetEase and U.S. tech giant Microsoft announced on Wednesday that they will reintroduce popular Blizzard Entertainment titles, including “World of Warcraft,” to players in the Chinese mainland. This move comes after a hiatus that ended a nearly 15-year partnership between NetEase and Blizzard.
The collaboration aims to bring online games from Blizzard Entertainment—a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, which Microsoft acquired last year—back to one of the world’s largest gaming markets starting this summer. NetEase had previously served as the publisher of Blizzard games in the Chinese mainland from 2008 to 2023.
“We at Blizzard are thrilled to reestablish our partnership with NetEase and to work together, with deep appreciation for the collaboration between our teams, to deliver legendary gaming experiences to players in China,” said Johanna Faries, President of Blizzard Entertainment, in a joint statement.
Beyond reintroducing Blizzard’s titles, NetEase and Microsoft have agreed to explore bringing NetEase’s own games to Microsoft’s Xbox and other gaming platforms. “This might be more consequential in the long run for NetEase as it is aspiring to increase its overseas exposure,” commented Jialong Shi, head of China internet equity research at Nomura.
The news has positively impacted NetEase’s stock, with shares rising about 2% in Wednesday morning trading, adding to a 3% gain on Tuesday fueled by anticipation of the announcement. NetEase is the Chinese mainland’s second-largest video games company by revenue, following Tencent.
The return of Blizzard’s games marks the end of a period of uncertainty for Chinese gamers. In January 2023, several Blizzard games were taken offline in the Chinese mainland after the developer terminated its partnership with NetEase due to disagreements over intellectual property rights. The two companies subsequently engaged in legal disputes.
Tensions began to ease following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard in October, which led to management changes and renewed negotiations. The renewed publishing agreement covers Blizzard’s flagship games such as “World of Warcraft,” “Hearthstone,” and other titles from the “Warcraft,” “Overwatch,” “Diablo,” and “StarCraft” franchises.
“We have always expected NetEase to regain distribution rights of Blizzard’s games, and the reengagement translates to about 2% incremental earnings for NetEase,” said Ivan Su, an analyst at Morningstar.
Blizzard’s games have a substantial following in the Chinese mainland. Local media estimated that “World of Warcraft” alone had around five million Chinese players in 2009 after NetEase became the publisher. The suspension of these games earlier this year sparked an outcry among gamers, with over a million users requesting refunds for unspent in-game credits.
The renewed partnership not only restores access to beloved games for millions of players but also signifies a strategic move for NetEase to expand its global footprint. As the company explores opportunities to bring its own titles to international platforms like Xbox, it positions itself for growth beyond the Chinese market.
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Microsoft, NetEase to re-launch Warcraft and other games in China
cgtn.com
