NetEase, an internet technology firm based in China, has signed a partnership with Paymentwall, a leading global payments and content distribution platform. The partnership will allow NetEase to expand its reach globally. After NetEase opened its office in San Francisco, U.S., last year, partnering with a multinational company seems just the right move for the Chinese internet giant to grow its business worldwide. Through Paymentwall, NetEase will be able to accept credit card payments as well as alternative payment options such as e-wallets, prepaid cards, and many more at its digital store. As a result, NetEase will be able to offer its online products and services to countries where traditional payment methods are not commonly used, and eventually widen its market share.
Services offered by NetEase include online and mobile games, social communication networks, e-commerce platforms, and many more. It is currently the largest email service provider in China, with over 790 million registered users as of June 30, 2015. The company was established in June 1997, and was able to grow its business through investment in search engine technology as well as in-house development of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG).
Some of the online games developed by NetEase for PCs include Fantasy Westward Journey, Tianxia III, Heroes of Tang Dynasty and many more. It was also able to create and license more than 35 games for mobile devices. NetEase also offers the well-known World of Warcraft and StarCraft to its audience, under its license with Blizzard Entertainment.
Aside from gaming, NetEase established a cross-border, e-commerce platform known as Kaola.com. The e-commerce platform is accessible on both desktop computers and mobile devices. In 2012, NetEase began working on a restaurant recommendation app known as “Fan Fan.” It has also collaborated with coursera.org to offer Massively Open Online Course (MOOC) in China. Aside from these, NetEase has a music streaming service that does not require logins from users.
Now that NetEase has partnered with Paymentwall, the company will be able to effectively monetize its diverse portfolio of online products and services. Paymentwall has a reliable track record for processing payments on different verticals such as gaming, dating, SaaS, e-Learning products and many more. This allows NetEase to offer traditional and alternative payment methods for its different products and services, and drive conversions in local and overseas markets.