EA Acquires Kesmai

EA further bolstered its internet intentions by acquiring Charlottesville, Virginia, based developer Kesmai Corporation. Kesmai, which had been a unit of News Corporation, will become a wholly owned subsidiary of EA's new internet business division. In addition, News Corporation and EA entered into a non-exclusive deal to distribute Fox Interactive online games through EA's expanding network. "We're confident the development strengths of Kesmai will greatly contribute to EA's future as a leader in the online entertainment market," said James Murdoch, executive vice president of News Corporation. The Kesmai acquisition builds on EA's other moves into the online games market in the past few months, including the acquisition of Playnation and a minority investment in Bottle Rocket.