Funcom and Massive Introduce New Advertisement Innovation; Toyota First Company to Utilize Interactive Ads in Games

Business Wire, July 19, 2006

DURHAM, N.C. -- In-game advertising takes another leap forward as Funcom and Massive Incorporated introduce interactive advertisement technology in 'Anarchy Online'. The new technology allows players to interact with dynamic billboards in the game, making for a more memorable and interactive advertisement experience. The new Toyota campaign allows players of the free 'Anarchy Online' version to walk up to in-game billboards and interact with it to unveil the sleek new Toyota Yaris. Funcom expects this new move in interactive advertisement to pave the way for future endeavors across the entire games and advertisement industry.

Massive Incorporated's CEO Mitch Davis heralded the joint move as "a tremendous step forward in terms of giving advertisers what they want -- the ability to target the elusive male 18-34 range and allowing them to interact with the products for a more memorable experience." He continued, "This is just the beginning of interactive ads in games, and we are very pleased to unveil this new technology together with Funcom and Toyota. What is important to mention here though is that we are not adding this to distract from the game experience itself. Our company always has the best interest of the gamers and the game experience in mind."

Massive Incorporated has pioneered in-game ad technology, and has grown to become the biggest game advertising network. The company was recently purchased by Microsoft.

"In Funcom we are always trying to push the envelope in innovation and technology, and this recent move with Funcom, Massive and Toyota is a perfect example," said Trond Arne Aas, CEO of Funcom. "Our primary goal is always to deliver the best possible entertainment, but to offset the high development costs in today's gaming landscape we need to look at additional forms of income. What Massive is offering us is exactly that, and we are therefore very pleased to continue working with them to introduce new technologies that give us a competitive edge."

On the 24th of March 2005 Anarchy Online became the first game ever to feature dynamic advertisement billboards. On the fourth anniversary of Anarchy Online on the 27th of June it became the first game to introduce live videos and sound on dynamic advertisement billboards. In 2005 more than 500.000 new players registered for Anarchy Online, and the game continues to draw in impressed crowds in their hundreds of thousands. A new expansion pack entitled 'Anarchy Online -- Lost Eden' will be released this fall. Go to www.anarchy-online.com for more information.

ABOUT MASSIVE INCORPORATED

Massive Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft, is the creator of the world's leading network for dynamic video game advertising. With 37 game publishers and more than 100 titles, the Massive Network offers advertisers the ability to reach an aggregated gaming audience in real-time across multiple platforms. Over 60 blue-chip advertisers have run campaigns across the Massive Network throughout North America and Europe. Publishers in the Massive Network generate the highest yield per title from dynamic in-game advertising, enabling them to leverage the value of their content while preserving and enhancing the game experience. Massive's technology allows for all forms of downloadable media and advertising content to be contextually integrated into the game environment, including image, audio, video and game object formats. www.massiveincorporated.com

ABOUT FUNCOM

Funcom is an independent developer and publisher of online games for PC, consoles and mobile platforms. Funcom has provided outstanding entertainment since 1993 and continues to expand its track-record of more than twenty released games. Recent successes include 'The Longest Journey', 'Anarchy Online' and 'Dreamfall: The Longest Journey'. For corporate information please visit www.funcom.com. For information about Funcom games visit www.anarchy-online.com, www.dreamfall.com or www.ageofconan.com. Funcom is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker FUNCOM.