Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group Acquires Online Gaming Studio

BURBANK: Turbine, the largest privately-held online gaming studio in North America, is now under the ownership of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group.

Turbine has created some of the most well-known gaming brands on the Internet, including Dungeons & Dragons Online, Eberron Unlimited and The Lord of the Rings Online. The acquisition of Turbine gives Warner Bros. access to a proprietary digital publishing platform that facilitates direct-to-consumer relationships, online merchandising opportunities and e-commerce functionality for online games. Turbine also has a social networking platform that can integrate its existing online communities with third-party social networks.

“Turbine is a leader in online entertainment and a strong strategic fit for Warner Bros. as we continue to broaden our games portfolio and development capabilities,” said Kevin Tsujihara, the president of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group. “Turbine’s renowned online game development and publishing expertise will help us develop additional online product offerings, while also providing us with new and innovative ways to market and communicate with our consumers.”

“We have been looking to expand access to our online worlds to more players and more markets,” commented Jim Crowley, the president and CEO of Turbine. “This acquisition is very exciting because it allows us to expand globally while continuing to focus on creating spectacular online games that our loyal fans and players have come to expect.”

“Turbine is recognized globally for its industry-leading technology, groundbreaking graphics and its unique ability to create and operate massive and persistent online worlds which greatly enhance players’ social gaming experiences,” added Martin Tremblay, the president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “The Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons & Dragons Online have both been an enormous success for Turbine and we look forward to working with their talented development team to continue creating award-winning online games.”