Rumor: The9 loses WoW license in China to Netease
by Mike Schramm 
Apr 15th 2009 at 7:00PM
The rumor supposedly comes from a leaked internal memo to The9 employees, which says that an unnamed company (supposedly Netease) is trying to pick up the rights and hardware for the game for a cool $22 million. The9 reportedly paid $73 million for the same capability, so they're losing twice on the deal -- both the license and the money they spent on it.
Not good news for The9 if it all turns out to be true, but maybe this means Chinese players will get their expansions a little sooner. Of course, a lot goes into releasing new content overseas (translation is definitely not a small part of it), but having a more capable operator probably won't hurt.
Update: Confirmed. Thanks for playing, The9. Their stock is down big time since the announcement, and Netease's is up.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Expansions, Wrath of the Lich King
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Spoonmaster Apr 15th 2009 7:05PM
Get those chinese their WotLK!
So we can finally get some Arena worldwide competition again.
Spoonmaster Apr 15th 2009 7:06PM
PVE too. :)
SunWell T6 forever Apr 17th 2009 3:27PM
We waited 9months for TBC, and still can't see any sign for WLK. I just hope I won't loss all my characters which I played for four years. All the WOW data belong to The 9, would they transfer the data to NetEase?
Competition? Never, we will keep wear T6 and traped in SunWell forever.
Ertaldi Apr 15th 2009 7:17PM
I am wondering, when WOTLK is released in China, will 3.1 be there from the start or will they haft to wait for it like US and EU?
Clbull Apr 15th 2009 7:43PM
I assume they would get 3.1 when it comes out, if not within weeks of coming out. Wasn't it the case that when TBC came out in China, it had all of the content upto 2.3?
Azbulldog Apr 15th 2009 7:44PM
Starcraft II? Don't get ahead of yourself.
elvendude Apr 15th 2009 7:58PM
Who's getting ahead of anything? Do you have any idea how long it will take to get Wrath past the Chinese censors?
kabshiel Apr 15th 2009 7:55PM
"having a more capable operator probably won't hurt"
Neither would having a non-oppressive government. I really doubt that Netease is going to have an easier time than The9.
MusedMoose Apr 15th 2009 7:59PM
Wow. Did Netease just ninja an entire game?
*grin*
Hoggersbud Apr 15th 2009 10:20PM
Nope, they burned all their DKP on it.
Kincaid Apr 15th 2009 9:46PM
I'd like to congratulate whoever came up with that picture.
kelon Apr 16th 2009 3:42AM
I don't want The9 lost WOW in China.
bingoli1986 Apr 16th 2009 4:55AM
Now the rumor became reality...
P1_P2 Apr 16th 2009 6:14AM
OK i will show you here what is a chinese wower PoV about this news:
The service of the9 in the past years was no good at all. Players experiensed horrible game lagging, hacking, BG and Arena cheating Blah blah blah. But the real problem is not that. The biggest point in our chinese wower commonly is that NetEase is a company full of crap. Yes, the MMOs Netease hold is even worse than the9.
First Netease do nothing after they cheated the battle.net service from the pervious company in China. No server, No game, that is all. The Pervious company (Aomei Soft.) brought chinese players from SC to War3 ,nearly everything. NerEase just kick Aomeisoft out and do nothing from then on. Yeah, Just Nothing.
Second. NetEase is a company with heavily relationship of the Beijing Gov. Their plan is somehow murder WOW with newspaper, shiping delay( that's why WotLK sill not in China mainland) and swept the mmo market with their own crap game.(crap beyond your imagination, gentelmen, NetEase sell game gold in their own games LoL).
After hearing the news, my guide mates are all joking each other with:
Maybe we need to pay 1 dollar for each time entering Zones. Maybe we need to buy game gold to repair. and May we see epic weapon selling on NetEase's homepages. ---And all these are what Netease doing with their own games.
Sad, Blizzard is again being cheated by Netease for the second time.
the 9 maybe not a good partner, but NetEase would be worse. I will bring you here what chinese wower's thoughts laterly.
Bob Apr 16th 2009 11:00AM
Sounds like wow players in China are getting screwed then.
P1_P2 Apr 17th 2009 12:04AM
Again, i bring here some news.
The Administrator of the biggest chinese WoW fan forums have given us the prove. The NetEase will take WoW service in the future. However the future is not so clear.
The current wow chinese verison is done by team from the9. And i could say they did a great job. In fact the Administrator above himself is the localize mananger. This man, aka "Ediart" ,was the farther and baby sitter of Chinese WoW. The site of NGA.CN ( National Geographic Azeroth) is his personal forum and an holy ground to Chinese wowers.What he told us is like:
1 The9's team already did all the localize job, including translation, graphic change ,alpha and beta test,and the whole WotLK contents .
2 Patch 3.1 contents and Ulduar is ready for chinese and currently under phase between alpha and beta testing.
3 The HQ of Blizzard sold out what The9's team done to NetEase which from a lawyer's POV is suitable.
4 ALL of his teamates was pissed off by HQ of Blizzard.
"Ediart" said he is really pissed off. As far i know, he is currently employed by the9 as one leadership of chinese wow service. His fate and what wow will go , is untold.
Background: "Ediart"is the man who bring wow to china and watch it grown from a baby. He can be compared to Lord British in UO. His hard work is proven to be like art. What he did to china Mainland verison is so great that it made the Taiwan's verison like a piece of Joke.
Last: The Chinese WoWers is facing their darkest hour. It could be an End or a new beginning. Though I know most people here may not care those play wow in other side of earth, i wish you know there is peoplel who truly love and care this game. thx.
Kanuris Apr 17th 2009 10:20PM
Wrath will still be delayed for ages in China.
Country with censorship laws regarding exposed bones and an Expansion pack with heavy emphasis on fighting the Undead do not a good relationship make.
Violienk May 7th 2009 8:12AM
So Netease said to The9:
u won't get back ur wow license in China,YOINK!