Yesterday, Aeria Games & Entertainment Inc. (AGE), an online games publisher that is based in Santa Clara, California, announced that it is taking over ijji Games. ijji, as you may know, is a subsidiary of NHN. USA, a Korean company, operating in the U.S. that provides a free multiplayer portal. One of the more popular games that ijji offers on that portal is the microtransaction-based, F2P shooter, Red Duck’s Alliance of Valiant Arms (A.V.A).
Aeria Games, a subsidiary of the Japanese Aeria Inc., also an Internet gaming portal, has historically focused on MMORPG’s. Aeria’s corporate successes so far have come from sticking to its mission statement: providing Asian MMO’s to an American audience. That success will undoubtedly continue after it swallows up ijji, which sees its player base to over 35 million users world-wide. Yes, 35 million!
Note that NHN has not completely cut its strings to A.V.A. By spinning ijji off, NHN has commited to providing Aeria with exclusive game content and it has given them an (undisclosed) investment as well.
Here is AGE’s press release (Source):
SANTA CLARA – January 5, 2012 – Aeria Games, a leading destination for free-to-play online multiplayer games, today announced it has acquired ijji Games LLC, a popular free-to-play online gaming portal, from NHN Corporation as part of a strategic agreement that gives Aeria Games the first right with preferential treatment to publish NHN online games worldwide outside of Asia. Under the terms, Aeria Games also received a financial investment from NHN to further fuel growth as a global MMO market leader. The agreement boosts the company’s fast growing player base to over 35 million unique users worldwide while adding complementary titles including the popular shooters Alliance of Valiant Arms (A.V.A.) and Soldier Front to Aeria Games’ robust portfolio of free-to-play games for mid- to hard-core players.
Aeria Games is a global leader in producing high quality online free-to-play games in North America, Latin America, and Europe. The company publishes titles that cater to players looking for a deeper and more immersive multiplayer experience with active community support. Aeria Games’ rapid growth comes from its expertise in delivering highly profitable freemium experiences to what it terms “power players”—hard-core and medium-core players whose average per day play sessions reflect four hours or more. Aeria Games hosts a diverse and rapidly growing portfolio of over 30 critically-acclaimed MMO titles spanning action, roleplaying, shooter, real time strategy, and racing games. The company is recognized for standout games including the MMO Eden Eternal, the popular MMORPG Shaiya, the supernatural MMOFPS Wolf Team, the expansive strategy game Golden Age and the upcoming action shooter Repulse.
“The acquisition of ijji Games further enhances our market leader position in the rapidly consolidating free-to-play sector of mid- and hard-core gaming,” said Lan Hoang, Chief Executive Officer, Aeria Games. “In addition to outstanding new content such as the popular A.V.A. and Soldier Front games and other quality titles from NHN going forward, NHN’s investment—which is our first external funding—will provide resources to facilitate our continuing growth and business expansion in multiple areas.”
With 300 employees worldwide, the California-based company continues to invest in emerging markets such as Latin America, Eastern Europe and Russia while growing its active community in the US and Western Europe. With its focus on first-person shooters, ijji Games adds over 10 million hard-core gamers to Aeria Games’ publishing platform for a combined user base consisting of over 35 million unique power players. Using advanced analytics and committed worldwide customer support, Aeria Games is able to bring quality games to market quickly with full local language support. In turn, Aeria Games’ community fuels development with extended play sessions and in-game purchase levels that are much higher than those yielded by typical online and social network games.
With content partnerships from top game companies such as Electronic Arts and NHN, as well as a host of independent developers from around the world, Aeria Games continues to add high-quality content to its portfolio. The publishing organization offers developers all the necessary tools—from a large established player base, a single virtual currency, data warehouse and analytics, optimized payment options, to local marketing and customer service—to quickly and efficiently distribute games to key fast growing Western markets. As consolidation continues in the dynamic free-to-play sector, Aeria Games will utilize the additional resources from NHN to strengthen its position as a truly device-agnostic platform for mid- to hard-core gamers by expanding its content and platform offerings and growing its international footprint.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. For more information on Aeria Games, visit http://www.aeriagames.com.
Not a surprise
The takeover of ijji Games does not come as a surprise. Rumblings of a massive shift in the company were being heard during A.V.A.’s IESF tournament in South Korea. Further speculation came when key community-interface people began to leave the company. As well, ijji’s level of service to A.V.A.’s community was severely questioned. A.V.A. players found ijji to be somewhat non-responsive and game support, it has been felt, suffered when compared to the level of service that is seen in Asia.
Will Aeria bring better service? One worry in this regard is that A.V.A. will be a much smaller player in Aeria’s portfolio and hence will not be prioritized. That definitely is a concern; however, at this time it appears that ijji’s A.V.A. squad will still be there, just being paid by a different master. Hopefully, by banding that squad and Aeria’s larger structure together, the net effect will be smoother, higher quality service.
ijji’s take
On the official ijji A.V.A. forums, we have their take (Source):
January 5, 2012
Dear ijji community,
Today we announced that Aeria Games, a leading publisher of free-to-play online games, has acquired ijji Games LLC from NHN Corporation. We are excited about the opportunity to combine Aeria and ijji into a single company that can better serve our community. Combined we will be able to offer more new industry leading games and a better gaming experience overall.
Below you will find our responses to questions that we anticipate users may have about this transaction. We are thankful for our players of both ijji and Aeria games, and we look forward to continuing to see you in our games and on our forums.
What will happen to my account with ijji?
For the next couple of months, your ijji account will work just the same as always. We do expect to move ijji accounts to the Aeria platform eventually, but we will provide advance notice to inform you of that migration and any necessary steps you will have to take. Your G-coin balance will transfer to Aeria’s currency (Aeria Points) at its cash value, and we will make the transition as simple as possible. Stay tuned!What if I have accounts with both ijji and Aeria?
When we migrate ijji accounts to the Aeria platform, we will allow users to consolidate ijji accounts into an existing Aeria account. G-coin balances will transfer to Aeria’s currency (Aeria Points) at cash value.What will happen to my G-Coin balance?
When we eventually move ijji accounts to the Aeria platform, your G-coin balance will transfer to Aeria’s currency (Aeria points) at its cash value. You can continue to purchase G-coin in the meantime and use it in ijji games.What will happen to ijji’s games?
Aeria acquired ijji based on belief in the potential for ijji’s portfolio. Together we will continue to invest in the development of ijji’s portfolio of games.Do I need to do anything different to keep playing my ijji games?
For the next couple of months, everything will work the same as always. If we make any changes that require any action on your part, we will let you know well in advance.Will I be able to keep my characters on my ijji games?
All ijji games will continue running as they are for now, and when you transition from your Ijji login to an Aeria login, all characters and game gear will remain intact.When will you start making changes?
For the next couple of months, ijji accounts and games will function just as they do now. Well in advance of any changes, we will communicate to ijji users about what’s coming and anything players need to do as ijji games migrate to the Aeria platform.I love ijji… how do I know that Aeria will keep up the customer service on my favorite games?
Aeria publishes more than 30 MMO titles, and has a staff of 50 game masters in just our US office, providing best-in-industry customer service. The combined Aeria and ijji teams will work together to ensure that customer service remains uninterrupted. Aeria’s portfolio includes leading first-person-shooters including the highly popular WolfTeam, and the Sci-Fi FPS Repulse that is entering a beta launch on January 6. The Aeria team is looking forward to meeting players from ijji’s games over the next couple of months, and talking with you on the Aeria forums.Where do I go for support on my ijji games, or to talk with the ijji community?
Please continue to use ijji customer support and the forums on ijji.com for help. We will provide advance notice before switching ijji games to Aeria customer support and forums.Should I continue using ijji.com and the ijji forums?
Yes! We will move ijji games to the Aeria platform eventually, but we will provide advance notice before any changes to the website or forums.Who is Aeria Games?
Aeria Games is a leading destination for free-to-play online multiplayer games. Aeria Games publishes and develops high quality online games in nine languages – English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Italian, Turkish and Russian. Aeria has a rapidly growing community of over 35 million core players and a deep portfolio of development partners. Aeria Games hosts a diverse and growing portfolio of over 30 critically-acclaimed MMO titles spanning action, roleplaying, shooter, real time strategy, and racing games. The company is recognized for standout games including the MMO Eden Eternal, the popular MMORPG Shaiya, the supernatural MMOFPS WolfTeam, the expansive strategy game Golden Age and the upcoming action shooter Repulse (formerly known as Genesis AD).Why did Aeria acquire ijji?
Quite simply, the Aeria and ijji teams believe that our two companies are stronger together than they were apart. For our players, this means we are better positioned to bring you the leading global online games, and to give you a better gaming experience. As part of this deal, Ijji’s former parent, NHN Corporation, has made a financial investment in Aeria Games that will help fuel the company’s growth as a global leader in the MMO gaming market.
