“Shanda is one of the largest online game operators in Asia, reaching hundreds of millions of online gamers,” said Susan Choe, chief executive officer, Outspark. “We see this partnership as another recognition of Outspark’s proven online MMO publishing experience, leading to yet another global leader publishing their successful title with Outspark, just as EA did last June with Dance Groove Online.”

“Outspark is the ideal partner for us,” said Donghai Chien, VP of Business Development, Shanda Games Limited. “Outspark works intimately with their games and operates them as a service that is very responsive to their players’ needs – which means players in all regions will get the best game experience possible. Outspark has also proven to be an early leader in business success with the free-to-play MMO model in the U.S. Their expertise is invaluable.”

The free-to-play online games business is the dominant form of interactive entertainment throughout Asia, attracting hundreds of millions of players and generating billions of dollars. Outspark has attracted millions of online gamers and generated millions of dollars in revenue from this audience, making it quite clear to Eastern and Western investors and game makers that the free-to-play space in North America and Europe is rapidly evolving.