Age of Conan Co-Publishing Agreement

Funcom issued a press release earlier this morning announcing that signing of a co-publishing agreement with SCi/Eidos for Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures.

Funcom and SCi/Eidos sign co-publishing agreement for “Age of Conan”

– The highly anticipated MMO has March to May as new launch window –

Oslo, Norway – July 24, 2006 – Funcom announces the signing of a co-publishing agreement with SCi/Eidos for “Age of Conan”, the highly anticipated Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMO). Under the terms of the agreement, SCi/Eidos is to publish the boxed product of “Age of Conan” while Funcom retains digital distribution rights. The agreement gives SCi/Eidos distribution rights for North America, Europe, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Funcom will operate servers and provide customer service for the game and collect and retain subscription revenues.

The two parties have agreed to set the new launch window between March and May 2007. The contract contains specific sales targets, which, if met, will make “Age of Conan” a highly successful game. The PC version of “Age of Conan” is currently in the Beta phase of development and Funcom and SCi/Eidos are pleased with the status of the game. Funcom and SCi/Eidos will also co-operate to bring the game to the console market.

“We are very excited to work with SCi/Eidos on the publishing of Age of Conan,” said Trond Arne Aas, CEO of Funcom. “SCi/Eidos has proven their strength in PR, marketing and distribution with series like Hitman and Tomb Raider, and we couldn”t be more pleased with our co-publishing partner. Our two companies share a strong commitment and ambition for the game, and we feel certain the partnership will increase the likelihood of success and the total sales potential for the game.”

“We have strong faith in the sales potential for “Age of Conan”, and by combining the knowledge and reach of both SCi/Eidos and Funcom we believe the game will become a great success,” said Ian Livingstone, Product Acquisition Director of Eidos. “The many E3 awards, the extensive worldwide press coverage, the vibrant online player community, the strong global brand and Funcom”s extensive MMO experience are all factors which bode well for the future of “Age of Conan”, and we will do our best to contribute to making it into a successful MMO franchise in the years to come.”

“Age of Conan” is a Showcase title for Windows Vista, and the game recently won the “Best MMO of E3” awards from IGN, GameSpot, GameSpy and Yahoo Games. More information, screenshots, forums, newsletter sign-up and a welcoming community portal can be found on the official website http://www.ageofconan.com.

_ _ __ _ _ _

ABOUT AGE OF CONAN : HYBORIAN ADVENTURES – In “Conan” the players will enter a mature, brutal and barbaric universe, presented with fantastic graphics and stunning 7.1 surround audio. In a world filled with cruel gods, mythical creatures, lost civilizations and a struggling human race, the mighty barbarian has finally seized the throne of Aquilonia. But King Conan”s rule is on the brink of chaos, spiraling towards doom as ancient evils rise again. In this twisted fantasy world, dark magic and brutal combat lurks around every corner, and each man and woman must carve their own unique destiny under Conan”s reign. In the true vision of Robert E. Howard”s dark universe, it”s now time for you to become a messenger of death.

ABOUT CONAN PROPERTIES INTERNATIONAL – Conan Properties International, a wholly owned subsidiary of Paradox Entertainment Inc., controls all rights to Conan, associated characters and the Hyborian world, as created by Robert E. Howard and expanded upon by acclaimed authors and artists for decades. Conan is considered to be the world”s best-known fantasy character. For more information about Conan Properties International, visit http://www.conan.com. For information about Paradox Entertainment Inc., visit http://www.paradox-entertainment.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 http://www.funcom.com. For information about Funcom games visit http://www.anarchy-online.com , http://www.dreamfall.com or http://www.ageofconan.com . Funcom is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker FUNCOM.

ABOUT EIDOS INTERACTIVE LTD – Eidos Interactive Ltd is part of SCi Entertainment Group Plc (SEG), one of the world’s leading publishers and developers of entertainment software. Following the acquisition of EIDOS Plc in May 2005, the Group has a valuable combined portfolio of intellectual property including the number one bestsellers Tomb Raider: Legend and Hitman: Blood Money, Conflict: Global Storm, Championship Manager, Just Cause, Battlestations: Midway, Urban Chaos: Riot Response and the interactive rights to Reservoir Dogs and Highlander. Visit http://www.eidos.com for more information.