The Lord of the Rings Online Headed to Russia

Turbine sent out a press release a few minutes ago announcing plans to distribute The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar in Russia and Eastern Europe.
TURBINE PARTNERS WITH IT TERRITORY TO BRING THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINEâ„¢ TO RUSSIA

WESTWOOD, MA -- January 28, 2008 -- Turbine, Inc. and IT Territory LLC (ITT) today announced a new relationship for the distribution of The Lord of the Rings Onlineâ„¢: Shadows of Angmarâ„¢, the PC Game of the Year 2007. Under the terms of the agreement between Turbine and IT Territory, a leading publisher of online games in Russia and Eastern Europe, will operate and manage publication of The Lord of the Rings Online in the fast-growing Russian market.

(Our vision is to lead the growth of online games in Russia,) said Igor Matsanyuk, President of IT Territory. (We believe that The Lord of the Rings Online is the perfect franchise for us to deliver to our audience as part of this strategy. Our partnership with Turbine underscores the tremendous success, attention to detail, and transparency that our operations bring to the best game developers in the world as they seek to enter the massive Russian market.)

(The Lord of the Rings Online has taken North America and Europe by storm and we are committed to bringing the game to fans around the world,) said Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc. (ITT is a major player in online gaming and we look forward to partnering with them to bring The Lord of the Rings Online to Russia.)

The Lord of the Rings Online delivers an interactive experience brimming with life and filled with the familiar people, places and monsters from the most beloved fantasy adventure of all time. From the quaint surroundings of the Shire to Angmar, the vile kingdom of the Witch-king, players will experience the world of Middle-earth as never before. The Lord of the Rings Online is currently operating in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. For more information about The Lord of the Rings Online, please visit www.lotro.com.

About Turbine
Turbine, Inc. is a premier creator and operator of massive, persistent online worlds that foster powerful social gaming communities. A team of entrepreneurs formed Turbine over a decade ago with the vision of becoming a leading provider of online entertainment. Since then, Turbine has grown to become one of the largest privately-held online gaming studios in North America. Turbine has created some of the most popular and award-winning online games, including The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™, Dungeons & Dragons Online™: Stormreach™ and Asheron's Call®. For more information on Turbine, its products and services please visit www.turbine.com.

About Tolkien Enterprises
The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises is the holder of worldwide motion picture, legitimate stage, merchandising, and other rights in J.R.R. Tolkien's literary works The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Tolkien Enterprises has been producing and licensing films, stage productions and merchandise based on Tolkien's works for almost 30 years. Its headquarters are in Berkeley, California, and its website may be found at www.tolkien-ent.com.

About IT Territory LLC
Since 2004 IT Territory has been a developer and publisher of massively multiplayer online games and casual games while developing the leading distribution network in Russia and Eastern Europe and becoming Russia's number one publisher. IT Territory runs multiple development studios and has a significant production department which is responsible for coordinating work on both new games and games that have been already launched. A team of highly professional programmers provides 24/7 technical and client support for all the players. Among IT Territory's business partners there are (some of) the largest Internet companies and info portals in the .RU zone. The main objective of IT Territory is to further promote the development of the game industry, games and game services, as well as to strengthen its own position as a top game company in the Russian-speaking segment of the world game market. Since IT Territory has a comprehensive infrastructure and extensive experience in the game business it can consistently launch commercially viable and successful games. Today the total number of Internet users currently playing IT Territory's games reaches up to 3,000,000 players. For more information on IT Territory and its services, please visit www.it-territory.ru