The9 buys $20m majority stake in Red 5 Studios

Chinese online games studio The9 has acquired a majority stake in partner devs Red 5 Studios.

The purchase of Red 5, which is lead by members of the team behind World of Warcraft, went through for $20 million.

The move comes just three months after Red 5 laid off around 30 staff in a major restructuring. At that time, Red 5 also said it had taken on additional cash from an unnamed “strategic partner”, now revealed as The9.

Red 5 last took on investment in 2006, when it raised $18.5 million from Benchmark Capital and Sierra Ventures.

The investment from The9 indicates that Red 5 is looking to expand into China’s gaming market, which has been growing rapidly in the last few years.

The9 also recently aquired a minority stake in Korean studio G10 Entertainment for $38 million.