Electronic Arts rumored to have acquired a stake in The9 Ltd.

Electronic Arts rumored to have acquired a stake in The9 Ltd.

World’s largest videogame publishers Electronic Arts is reported to have acquired a stake in the The9 Ltd. Media reports claim that EA has reached an agreement with The9 to purchase a 19 percent stake in the company.

The9 Ltd. is a china based online game operator and the deal with EA is said to be worth close to USD 200 million.

Shanghai Securities News broke this story though none of the involved companies have issued a statement confirming the deal.

The report further claimed that The9 has now obtained the exclusive right to run EA’s casual game FIFA Online in China at the end of March.

They already have the rights to operate the “World of Warcraft” online game in China. If this deal is indeed true, it would give EA a direct entry into the Chinese online gaming market.