Local online game publisher Gameflier International Corp (遊戲新幹線) is joining hands with Beijing-based Pearl-in-Palm Information Technology Ltd (PiP, 掌上明珠) for the first time, in hopes that the distribution of the latter’s Web game will boost its business momentum in the fourth quarter.
Gameflier, a subsidiary of local online game company Soft-World International Corp (智冠科技), said last week it has won the license to distribute Pearl-in-Palm Qun Ying (明珠群英傳) in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, with debut preparation underway.
Founded in 2003, PiP designs mobile games and released Qun Ying in China in June. Membership for the title has skyrocketed to 4 million to date.
The new partnership followed Gameflier’s announcement in the middle of last month that the company had won the rights of Japan’s Rosso Index to distribute the latter’s Master of Epic Online in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and China.
This slew of new title releases from Gameflier is expected to boost fourth-quarter momentum of Softworld International — the parent of Gameflier and Chinese Gamer International Corp (中華網龍).
Softworld last week said it expects profit and revenue in the -current quarter to surpass those of the third, thanks to its subsidiaries’ new title launches.
Analysts are especially upbeat on the near-term prospects for Chinese Gamer, which saw third-quarter revenue of NT$569 million (US$17.8 million) and profit of NT$255 million — up 32.6 percent and 65.3 percent respectively from the second quarter.
With strong player reception of the blockbuster game Emperor Online (天子傳奇) as well as the gambling game Diamonds Club (鑽石俱樂部), Chinese Gamer is projected to post fourth-quarter profits higher than KGI Securities Co’s (凱基證券) estimation of NT$270 million, the brokerage firm said.
Meanwhile, rival Gamania Digital Entertainment Co (遊戲橘子) is also expected to usher in rosier prospects for the last three months of the year.
According to Fubon Securities Co (富邦投顧), Gamania’s net profits are forecast to hit NT$73 million this quarter, up 727 percent over the earlier quarter and up 174.7 percent from the same period last year.
The surge is because of a low profit base in the third quarter, when it had to book research and development costs, the establishment of offices in the US and Europe, as well as marketing expenses for the Tokyo Game Show, Fubon said.
Gamania is set to roll out two new titles, Dragon Nest (龍之谷) and Hero 108 (水火108) in Taiwan this quarter.
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