ePLDT buys 60% of Level Up!

ePLDT, Inc., the information and communications technology arm of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), has acquired 60% of local online gaming company Level Up! Inc. (Level Up!) from Level Up! International Holdings Pte. Ltd. (LUIH). The companies did not disclose the value of the deal. ePLDT said in a statement that its online gaming arm, netGames, and Level Up! will continue to operate independently until completion of the merger in the first quarter 2007. When the merger is completed, ePLDT expects to become dominant online gaming company in the Philippines, with an estimated 90% market share. LUIH will continue to be responsible for day to day operations of Level Up! and will provide international assistance and industry expertise to ePLDT. LUIH is the holding company which established Level Up! and is also the leading online game publisher in Brazil and India. Level Up! is the pioneer in the local online gaming industry, publishing the first local online game, OZ World, in 2002. In 2003, Level Up! introduced Ragnarok, an internationally popular massively multi-player online role-playing game (MMORPG) by Korean developer Gravity Co., Ltd. ("Gravity"). To-date, Ragnarok continues to be the top online game in the country, with still over 50% market share. It is also the operator of online game titles ROSE Online, a full 3D role-playing game from Gravity; and RF Online, a race game in a sci-fi/fantasy setting; Hyper Relay, a free-to-play arcade-style gaming suite licensed from Singaporean publisher Teckwah Online Pte. Ltd.; and Free Style Online, a hip-hop-influenced street basketball game from JC Entertainment Co., Ltd. "Both content and alternative channels of connectivity and distribution, as well as media, are growing and helping to expand the market. As a member of the PLDT group, Level Up! will be able to take advantage of the many synergies with PLDT’s leadership in this sector," LUIH said in a statement. netGames, meanwhile, is a relatively younger contender in the online gaming business. Its first entry to online gaming was Khan Online by Mirinae Entertainment of Korea, the Philippines’ first full-3D online game. "The acquisition of Level Up! is consistent with the PLDT Group’s strategy to bring rich and compelling content to its internet subscribers and users and eventually its mobile subscribers as well. The acquisition will also enhance the position of ePLDT as one of the leading content aggregators in the country. "As ePLDT brings richer and more compelling content to the market, it is anticipated that demand for wired and wireless broadband services will further increase," Ray C. Espinosa, president and chief executive officer of ePLDT, said. BusinessWorld