Several hours ago, we reported that Electronic Arts had agreed to buy a 19 percent stake in The9 Ltd. for about US$ 200 million. The9 is currently mainland China's exclusive distributor of Blizzard's World of Warcraft MMORPG, with this deal (according to Shanghai Securities News) giving the Shanghai-based company further rights to EA's FIFA Online game.

That is, if this report had been confirmed.

EA spokesman Jeff Brown has just stepped out into the open to announce that contrary to reports from publications like the Shanghai Securities News, EA had not entered into any business dealings of the sort. "There is no signed agreement with The9," Brown said, further commenting that EA did not comment on rumors and speculation like this. Given that this is all EA has to say at the moment, we'll let the readers know in case we run into more clarifications on this whole matter.

Mike Musgrove of the Washington Post admits that he doesn't get World of Warcraft. He claims that although he's tried to like the game because all of his acquaintances - sister-in-law included - are into the game, he just can't seem to play into the wee hours. His solution? Hire other folks to do the grunt work for him.

Yep, Musgrove has a report that takes a look, a newbie guide if you will, to the murky world of outsourcing and power-leveling services in World of Warcraft. Known companies like Shanghai-based IGE (the largest outsourcing one around) are looked at, and Blizzard Entertainment's problems with power-leveling services are looked at.

It's a "welcome to the Internetz!" type article; Up on Washington Post so that elder folks can get clued in on what you young'uns (and young-at-heart) are doing with all your free time.

The argument for power-leveling services? Here's IGE's chief operation officer, James Clarke:

The practice is analogous to someone who maintains a beautiful garden but doesn't always have enough time to perform all the yard work himself, and therefore hires a gardener. ...Some purists might call hiring a gardener 'cheating,' but we believe most people are quite comfortable with it.

Yeah, that argument. Not only is it a service, it's the livelihood of thousands of underpaid third-world gamers who'd rather get (under)paid to improve some idiot's Paladin than have to push some papers, mop floors, or make coffee.

The end of the tale? Musgrove got his character back after spending US$ 24. His character, Johnmullet is now Level 20, he's now enjoying the game with his family. Thing is, he's now wondering if he'd enjoy the game more if he spent a bit more than 24 bucks.

If you're curious about his adventures into having underpaid third-world gold-farmers improve his in-game ego, feel free to read Musgrove's entire report via our "read" link below. Oh, and before we go, just one thing: Musgrove who's character is in the Ursin server, is looking to get rid of his gear before Blizzard shuts him down for violating their terms of service.

"A Game Developers Conference in China is long overdue," said Hugo Shong, President and CEO of IDG Asia. "At long last, there will be an opportunity for Asian and Western game makers to discover everything that the Chinese game market has to offer."

Yes folks, the GDC is coming to China. CMP Technology, the people behind the GDC, have partnered with IDG to produce GDC China. The inaugural event, featuring content programmed by an advisory board consisting of local Chinese developers who share a commitment to promote and support their country's game industry, is set to take place August 27 to 29 in Shanghai.

The most telling difference between GDC China and the original GDC is that GDC China will be produced "by China, for China," offering unique learning, sharing and networking opportunities for the Chinese market, and those looking for a vertical reach into that market.

"GDC is about connecting the worldwide game development community, but it has become more and more apparent to us that certain markets require a unique, specialized experience," said Meggan Scavio, Senior Conference Manager of CMP's Game Developers Conference. "The local developers on the GDC China advisory board hope to make that experience a reality and give the burgeoning Chinese market an infusion of creative ideas and strategic partnerships."

Thanks to revenue from Blizzard's World of Warcraft, Shanghai-based online game operator The9 Limited has reported a 54% rise in its net income for the fourth quarter. The company reported net revenues of US$ 36.2 million in the fourth quarter, a 21% increase from the third quarter of 2006 and a 54% increase from the previous fiscal year.

Of its net Q4 revenues, The9 attributed US$ 36.1 million to its operation of WoW, which recorded peak and average concurrent user numbers of 680,000 and 340,000, respectively, in the fourth quarter. This includes revenue from game-playing time, merchandise and installation package sales. The9 began operating the game in mainland China two years ago.