GUANGZHOU, China, May 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Soon Chinese Minecraft fans will be able to create and explore their very own worlds limited only by their imaginations. Microsoft, Mojang and NetEase, Inc. today announced a five-year exclusive agreement to license Mojang's Minecraft mobile and PC editions to a NetEase, Inc. affiliate in mainland China. As part of the agreement, Mojang will develop a version of Minecraft tailored for the Chinese market and release it in partnership with NetEase. Minecraft is a world-renowned sandbox game that enables players to adventure in uncharted realms, collect resources and build in an infinite world.

Minecraft officially launched in 2011, and has received numerous global awards and accolades. There are more than 100 million registered Minecraft players of all ages in nearly every country in the world.

Minecraft features multiple game modes and offers players limitless ways to play. In survival mode, the players gather resources to keep themselves alive and build shelters and other contraptions. While in creative mode, players have access to endless resources so they can construct any building or scene out of almost any block in the game. Players also can enjoy maps and scenarios created by others in adventure mode. Besides these various game modes, the Minecraft community has over the years created countless numbers of mods and custom content for use in Minecraft. Minecraft provides players an open platform and enables them to create their very own utopia with endless possibilities.

"We'll always embrace opportunities to bring Minecraft to new players around the world, widening our community, and giving us a new perspective on our game," said Jonas Martensson, CEO of Mojang, creators of Minecraft. "NetEase understands our long-term vision for Minecraft and supports Mojang's ideals, so we're delighted to have them on board. We look forward to welcoming China's builders and adventurers to the world of Minecraft."

"We are excited to bring Minecraft to Chinese audiences, and expect our large online community to embrace this preeminent game," said William Ding, CEO and founder of NetEase, Inc. "With our deep understanding of the Chinese market and our ability to successfully launch world-renowned online and mobile games, we offer a strong platform for the introduction of Minecraft to China's vast user base. We believe this cooperation could leverage the strengths of both Mojang and NetEase, as well as provide the world's largest audience with a superior user experience."

To learn more about Minecraft, please visit www.minecraft.net.

About Microsoft

Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

About Mojang

Mojang is a game development studio based in Sweden, best known for developing Minecraft. In 2014, Mojang joined Microsoft Studios to continue work on Minecraft and bring their vision, creative energy and innovative mindset to the development of future games.

About NetEase, Inc.

NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ :NTES ) is a leading Internet technology company in China. Dedicated to providing online services centered around content, community, communication and commerce, NetEase develops and operates some of China's most popular online PC and mobile games, advertising services, email services and e-commerce platforms. In partnership with Blizzard Entertainment, NetEase operates some of the most popular international online games in China.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains statements of a forward-looking nature. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these forward-looking statements by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. The accuracy of these statements may be impacted by a number of business risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated, including risks related to: the risk that the online game market will not continue to grow or that NetEase will not be able to maintain its leading position in that market, which could occur if, for example, its new online games or expansion packs and other improvements to its existing games do not become as popular as management anticipates; the ability of NetEase to successfully expand its mobile internet offerings; the ability of NetEase to effectively market its games and other services and achieve a positive return on its marketing expenditures; the risk that Shanghai EaseNet will not be able to continue operating World of Warcraft^®, StarCraft^® II, Hearthstone^®: Heroes of Warcraft^™, Diablo III^®: Reaper of Souls^™, Heroes of the Storm^™, Overwatch^™ or other games licensed by it for a period of time or permanently due to possible governmental actions or the risk that such games will not be popular with game players in China; the risk that changes in Chinese government regulation of the online game market and the market for NetEase's e-commerce services may limit future growth of NetEase's revenues or cause revenues to decline; competition in the online advertising business and the risk that investments by NetEase in its content and services may not increase the appeal of the NetEase websites among internet users or result in increased advertising revenues; the risk that NetEase may not be able to continuously develop new and creative online services, including its ability to maintain and enhance the popularity of its e-mail, mobile and e-commerce services and develop attractive mobile games; the risk that NetEase will not be able to control its expenses in future periods; competition in NetEase's existing and potential markets; governmental uncertainties (including possible changes in the effective tax rates applicable to NetEase and its subsidiaries and affiliates and the ability of NetEase to receive and maintain approvals of the preferential tax treatments and general competition and price pressures in the marketplace); the risk that fluctuations in the value of the Renminbi with respect to other currencies could adversely affect NetEase's business and financial results; and other risks outlined in NetEase's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. NetEase does not undertake any obligation to update this forward-looking information, except as required under the applicable law.

For further information please contact:

Juliet Yang
NetEase, Inc.
hzyangyy@corp.netease.com
Tel: (+86) 571-8985-3378

Brandi Piacente
Investor Relations
brandi@corp.netease.com
Tel: (+1) 212-481-2050

SOURCE NetEase, Inc.

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