NEWS - Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Activision Confirms DemonWare Deal
According to the announcement, the purchase of the Dublin, Ireland-based developer will "enable Activision to gain efficiencies related to online game development and positions the company to take advantage of the growth in online gameplay that will be driven by the next-generation consoles." DemonWare has two primary products -- MatchMaking+ provides community services including player matchmaking and statistics gathering, and State Engine helps to ensure secure, lag-free connections between consoles. The company’s technologies have most recently been used in Activision’s Call of Duty 3, though the company has also provided networking technology for other publisher’s products, including Ubisoft’s Splinter Cell: Double Agent and Sega’s Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast. Activision did not state whether other publishers will have access to DemonWare’s technologies following the acquisition, though the release did make clear that the primary reason for the purchase was to gain efficiencies in building networking into Activision’s own products. Under the agreement, DemonWare will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision. Says Dylan Collins, CEO of DemonWare (pictured), of the acquisition: "Activision and DemonWare have worked together on several highly successful multiplayer titles, and we have a shared vision on where the future of online gaming lies. Our technology has been used in some of the most innovative multiplayer games on both the console and PC platforms, so consumers should be incredibly excited about the plans we have for Activision’s online gaming strategy moving forward."Source: http://www.next-gen.biz
