MindArk Creates First Planet Company To Manage $400 Million Virtual Economy On Planet Calypso
05 January 2009
Original press release[edit]
MINDARK CREATES FIRST PLANET COMPANY TO MANAGE $400 MILLION VIRTUAL ECONOMY ON PLANET CALYPSO
(Gothenburg, Sweden) – January 05, 2008 – MindArk PE AB, developer of the Entropia Universe Virtual World Platform, today announces the inception of First Planet Company AB, a fully owned subsidiary of MindArk PE AB. First Planet Company will oversee the operation, development and marketing of the MMORPG "Planet Calypso," built on the Entropia Universe platform. Marco Behrmann, former Chief Information Officer at MindArk, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer and Creative Director for First Planet Company.
First Planet Company will develop and maintain the MMORPG "Planet Calypso," built on the Entropia Universe platform. CEO and Creative Director, Marco Behrmann, began with MindArk AB in 2002 as concept writer, game designer, community director and information officer. Prior to joining the MindArk team, Behrmann held the title of marketing director for the glossy lifestyle magazine Codex as well as Lead Designer and P.R. Manager at the game studio Computer House. Among his many achievements Behrmann is joint founder of one of Sweden's most prominent tabletop Role-Playing game studios, Neogames AB and is also a successful author, having written and published over twenty books.
"My vision is to supply the resources needed to allow the creative team the freedom and time to create interesting short- and long-term storylines, enhance and polish game-play, add role-playing aspects, and cater to events," says Marco Behrmann. "My role and objective is to bring and maintain a coherency to the Planet Calypso history and storyline. We are dedicated to achieving our over-arching goal of making Planet Calypso a truly outstanding Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game."
Entropia Universe is recognized as an award winning 3D online virtual universe for interactive entertainment, social networking and e-commerce. The creation of First Planet Company allows MindArk to solely focus on platform development suitable for a wide range of industries interested in utilizing the opportunities of the 3D Internet, while First Planet Company will develop the end-user experience with the online MMO Planet Calypso.
About First Planet Company
First Planet Company AB operates, develops and markets Planet Calypso, a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) that is part of the Entropia Universe and is powered by the Entropia Universe Platform. Set in a distant future the planet Calypso is home to an expanding human colony struggling with the natural, social and economic elements involved in establishing their new civilization.
The software is free to download and there are no monthly subscription fees. Instead Planet Calypso uses a real cash economy with a virtual currency, adding an exciting realism to the game play experience.
About MindArk and Entropia Universe
Entropia Universe is an expanding entity of interoperable 3D virtual worlds based on the proprietary Entropia Universe Platform. Each virtual world takes the form of a planet(s) within the virtual Entropia Universe. The Entropia Universe Platform contains full support for secure micro-transactions in real-time, rich media viewing, transactions with real and virtual items, MMOG entertainment and social interaction between global participants. Its virtual currency, the PED, has a fixed exchange rate of 10:1 with the US dollar.
The Entropia Universe Platform has been developed over 10 years at a cost of more than $40 million USD. Launched commercially in 2003, MindArk's planet Calypso has been generating profit since 2004 and has served as a vehicle for fine tuning the platform's business model and functionality. During 2007, the Entropia Universe Platform provided a secure and stable means for $400 million in user-to-user transactions. Today there are over 800,000 registered accounts from over 200 countries.
For more information, please visit www.mindark.com and www.entropiauniverse.com.
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