Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase Games have signed a licensing agreement that will bring Activision-Blizzard games back to the Chinese market after 15 months of separation. Games like World of Warcraft and Hearthstone will return through NetEase, the company that publishes Blizzard’s games in China.
Some key things to know about the new deal are:
- Blizzard and NetEase had a partnership for over 10 years, but their last contract ended in January 2023. They couldn’t agree on new terms.
- Games like World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Diablo, StarCraft and future titles will come back through the new deal.
- NetEase CEO William Ding said they are happy to start again with trust and respect for players in China.
- The split hurt both company’s stock prices. They also sued each other but dropped all legal actions.
- Microsoft’s $69 billion purchase of Activision-Blizzard helped make a new agreement possible.
- Chinese players will be thrilled to play popular Blizzard games again through NetEase, the #1 games company in China.
- The deal means billions in new revenue as China is the biggest gaming market worldwide.
Blizzard and NetEase rekindle gaming partnership to bring beloved titles back to Chinese fans is a potential catchy title that highlights the key points of the companies coming together again and games returning.
