Large, previously untapped markets added through new partnership with
Wallie, a leading prepaid card company
TORONTO, Jan. 10 /CNW/ - SilverBirch Studios, a member of the SilverBirch Inc. (TSX-V: SVB) group of companies, and G4Box, today announced strong sales for the Metin2 Online Multi-Player Game in its first three months of operations. The companies also announced a partnership with Wallie(TM), a leading international prepaid card company that could open significant, previously untapped markets for the game.
SilverBirch Studios and G4Box report record weekly sales of more than $16,000 following strong week-over-week growth since Metin2 (www.metin2.us) was launched commercially. Total game downloads now exceed 350,000, and the highest number of daily concurrent users has topped 1,150.
"The response to Metin2's release has been extremely encouraging and continues to grow," said G4Box Inc. CEO, Howard He. "Players' enthusiasm has far exceeded our expectations. Other successful territories such as Japan and Germany took much longer to reach these levels."
Commenting on the partnership with prepaid card company Wallie, Wojtek Kawczynski, Senior Vice President and General Manager of SilverBirch Studios, said: "The partnership with Wallie provides a simple, secure and fast payment alternative for current and new users of Metin 2. Their extensive distribution in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Mexico and the United Kingdom will help add significant revenue and user base growth to Metin2."
Metin2, a 3D fantasy game involving a medieval battle of empires, is a leading title in the MMORPG genre, one of the fastest-growing segments of the online game market. Other localized versions of Metin2, in Germany and throughout the Far East, have attracted a large and growing following, according to the game's South Korean creator and Licensor, Ymir Entertainment. It is part of a worldwide online game market that DFC Intelligence reports is forecasted to grow from US$3.4 billion in 2005 to over US$13 billion in 2011, 55% of which will be derived from MMORPG games.
About SilverBirch Studios Inc.
SilverBirch Studios is a leading developer, based in Toronto, specializing in premium handheld and mobile games. The Company is focused on end-to-end game development with leading publishers for projects based on its own proprietary IP as well as that of its many partners. SilverBirch Studios Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of SilverBirch Inc., a publicly traded digital media company based in Toronto. For more information visit www.silverbirchinc.com
About G4Box Inc.
G4Box was founded in September 2004 in Markham, Ont. Its primary business is in the distribution of MMORPG games. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of 568 Network Inc., a Markham based developer, publisher and distributor of games that also partners with CryptoLogic Inc. in online casino and poker games for the Chinese market. For more information on G4Box, please visit www.g4box.com.
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Forward-Looking Statements - Certain information set forth in this news release, including management's assessment of future plans, contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond management's control, including the impact of general economic conditions, industry conditions, and currency fluctuations. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.
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