The Disney group of the United States and T&E Soft Inc., a Nagoya-based developer of computer games, have reached a nonexclusive agreement to develop online Disney-branded games for broadband networks, the two firms announced Monday in Tokyo.
Using a variety of Disney characters, such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, T&E will develop multiplatform online games for children and families, the companies said.
They plan to launch products in 2002 for the Japanese and Asian markets.
As a part of the alliance, T&E will issue 7.5 billion yen in convertible bonds, including 5.5 billion yen to Disney Interactive and Walt Disney Internet Group, 1 billion yen to Square Co. and 1 billion yen to Masafumi Miyamoto, the majority shareholder of both T&E and Square.
Square, a leading video game developer based in Tokyo, will also offer technological and marketing support for the project, the companies said during a press conference in Tokyo.
They declined to go into further details during the press conference, saying that it is too early to comment on what kind of games will be developed for what platforms.