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Zong Partners with Leading Freemium Online Game Destination OutsparkPALO ALTO, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Zong (www.Zong.com), the most frictionless payment service for gaming and social media publishers, today announced that it has partnered with Outspark, the leading online virtual playground combining Freemium based online games with personalized social experiences. Outspark community members can now use their mobile phones, via Zong's mobile billing service, to purchase SparkCash, Outspark's virtual currency. With over nine years of operating experience, Zong has high-scale connectivity with more than 100 mobile carriers worldwide. The Zong mobile payments platform features the most extensive network of direct carrier connections across the globe. Direct mobile carrier relationships are a key factor for virtual goods, social networking and gaming companies evaluating where to deploy secure transaction platforms that are critical for new revenue generation. "We're thrilled to partner with Outspark. Given Outspark's gaming offerings, its target audience and its virtual currency & goods based model, Zong is a highly complementary and valuable payment option for Outspark users," said David Marcus, Founder and CEO, Zong. "The partnership allows us to introduce the mobile billing concept to a large, growing and global audience of Outspark members, many of whom we expect to be high-frequency users of the easy-to-use Zong mobile billing service." Since its launch in late 2007, Outspark has grown to nearly 5 million users as part of its member base, the vast majority of which are North American. Outspark publishes several popular MMO games, including Fiesta, Secret of the Solstice, Wind Slayer and Project Powder, and Outspark members can use SparkCash virtual currency to purchase a myriad of items within each game. Integration of Zong as a payment platform for purchase of SparkCash further extends Outspark's range of revenue enhancement opportunities by helping the company monetize users that may not have another reliable or trusted method of purchase. "Zong provides a great opportunity for a larger number of gamers to purchase our virtual currency and apply it towards a more personalized and customized in-game experience," said Wilson Kriegel, Vice President, Business Development at Outspark. "The partnership fits our consumer value proposition and provides Outspark continued growth across its games globally." About Zong Zong is the leading mobile payment service used for monetizing Web audiences in the social media and gaming industries. Noted for its frictionless user experience, Zong converts "shoppers" into "buyers" at rates up to 10 times greater than traditional payment methods, like credit cards. Zong is featured in hundreds of top applications on popular social networks like Facebook (News - Alert) and MySpace as well as leading virtual worlds and other online gaming sites. Founded in 2000, the company leverages direct connections with leading mobile network operators around the world to provide unrivaled connectivity to mobile subscribers. For more information, please visit http://www.zong.com. About Outspark Outspark is a leading North American publisher and service operator of multiplayer online games that are micro-transaction based. Since the company's formation in January 2007, the online community has grown to more than 4.5 million users, the majority of which are located in North America. Featuring a portfolio of immersive free-to-play games and related content, the company is building an online destination where members come for the games and stay for the community. Titles include Fiesta, Secret of the Solstice, Bread ‘n Butter, Project Powder, Blackshot and Wind Slayer. Backed by Altos Ventures, DCM (News - Alert) and Tencent, Outspark is headquartered in San Francisco, Calif. For more information, visit http://www.outspark.com. |
