Ideazon acquisition
Bought out by fellow gaming gear maker SteelSeries.
CHICAGO, July 29, 2008 - The leading manufacturer of innovative professional gaming gear, SteelSeries, today announced its acquisition of certain assets in Ideazon, Inc., the North American-based developer and manufacturer of gaming peripherals and technologies. This acquisition further strengthens SteelSeries' peripheral technology and will help expand the company's broad support within the gaming community.
“SteelSeries has brought together two rapidly growing companies in the gaming space, making SteelSeries one of the fastest-growing gaming peripherals manufacturers globally," said Bruce Hawver, CEO of SteelSeries. “No other organization works as closely with both gamers, and now software creators, in order to create arguably the most responsive gaming products in the world, optimized for gamers' preferences, as well as specific gaming publishers and specific titles."
SteelSeries has achieved success and recognition over the past few years in working with and establishing new professional gaming events, like Iron.Lady and King of the Hill, as well as its support of more than 1,200 events globally. Ideazon has helped enhance the gaming experience through its relationships with top game developers and publishers, but its start in gaming also came from the gamers' perspective and has grown from there.
“Ideazon's game-branded line of PC peripherals is incredibly popular and enjoys a dedicated following," added SteelSeries' Hawver. “Their products truly complement our own by extending our reach to a broader audience of gamers. Our combined expertise with competitive gamers will help speed the development of game- branded products by linking the game developers with the strongest group of pro gamers in the world."
SteelSeries supports more than 200 professional gaming teams globally and has involved many more pro and competitive gamers during its product development process. Ideazon has also inspired a community of gamers in terms of both sponsorships and event support.
“This acquisition will further establish SteelSeries as a leading global gaming peripherals manufacturer," said Jacob Wolff-Petersen, Founder of SteelSeries . “No other organization works as closely with gamers and industry partners, or has a more comprehensive line of products to support every type of gamer. The synergies between Ideazon and SteelSeries are evident in the design, relationships and industry influence that both companies bring to the table to create this new gaming powerhouse."
The new combined organization will be headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark with offices in North America and Asia.
About SteelSeries
SteelSeries is a leading manufacturer of gaming peripherals and accessories, including headsets, keyboards, mice, software and gaming surfaces, available in more than 75 countries. SteelSeries, whose motto is “winning is everything," has been on the forefront of professional gaming gear since its inception in 2001. The company has set a new benchmark for gaming accessories around the world thanks to continued innovation and product development in cooperation with leading professional gamers, the world's most demanding IT consumers, who actually make a living based on the quality of SteelSeries products. SteelSeries' development strategy is simple: Only products that take performance to the next level will be introduced. This ensures optimum performance and durability across a variety of gaming and other demanding applications. For more information, please visit www.SteelSeries.com.
About Ideazon Inc.
North American-based Ideazon Inc. develops, manufactures and markets the next generation of gaming peripheral technologies that enhance the gamers experience. Working with the gaming community - with partners, game developers and publishers - Ideazon develops its entire line of Precision Gaming Tools to maximize comfort, control, and in game dominance. Since its beginnings in 1999, the company has grown to be an industry leader in gaming technologies and has assembled an impressive list of technology partners including Activision Blizzard, Eidos Interactive, Electronic Arts, NCsoft Corporation, Microsoft Game Studios, NVIDIA and Sony Online Entertainment. For more information, visit the Web site at www.ideazon.com.
Press Inquiries
Tori Pugliese
Cohn & Wolfe for SteelSeries
212-798-9860
tori_pugliese@cohnwolfe.com
Steve Bosk
Cohn & Wolfe for SteelSeries
212-798-9752
stephen_bosk@cohnwolfe.com