Trion Worlds, the leading publisher and developer of premium games for the connected era, has completed an $85 million round of strategic growth equity financing, led by Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (Teachers'), one of the world's leading pension funds focused on direct investments in both public and private equities. Also participating was current Trion investor Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Bertelsmann AG, a leading international media company. Trion will utilize the financing to further grow its worldwide premium online games business.

"We are thrilled about entering this exciting period of growth and scale with our investors," Lars Buttler, Founder and CEO, Trion Worlds, said. "Backing from a stalwart long-term investor such as Teachers', which has the experience and structure to support our vision, and the expanded relationship with our current stakeholder and great supporter, BDMI, is a massive endorsement for Trion."

Rift™, the company's award-winning first title, launched last March. Showcasing Trion's dynamic online platform, Rift established the company's long-term vision to revolutionize games. Players activated more than one million Rift accounts in less than four months, and its North American and European revenues surpassed $100 million in 2011. Rift has set a new industry standard for massively multiplayer online role-playing games, proving that gamers are embracing original, high-quality IPs and rich, dynamic game experiences built for the new online generation.

"Rift's success with gamers worldwide is the tip of the iceberg for Trion," Buttler said. "No other company has successfully attempted to create an original IP, build paradigm-altering technology, and develop a business of scale to lead the industry, let alone excel at all three. We have a world class team focused on our vision to bring the era of connected live services to premium games, much in the way casual and mid-core games have already been disrupted."

Trion's next two titles will showcase the company's operational agility and the strength of its technology platform. End of Nations™, the company's highly anticipated massively multiplayer real-time strategy game being developed with Petroglyph Games, is scheduled to start rolling out in early 2012. Defiance™ is a collaborative project with Syfy to simultaneously produce a TV show and an online action game in the same universe, with merging storylines and the ability to mutually impact events and consequences across the mediums.

Trion also recently announced plans to launch an initiative, code-named Red Door, which comprises both a consumer platform and a full-scale publishing and development platform based on the technology fueling its own games. The Red Door platform is built to host the future of premium games with end-to-end capabilities and customized services for discrete partners.

With its upcoming titles and Red Door, Trion will be expanding its genre, device, and publishing offerings, as well as scaling the reach and power of its platform.

About Trion Worlds
Trion Worlds is the leading publisher and developer of premium games for the connected era. Powered by a breakthrough development and publishing platform, Trion is revolutionizing the way games are developed, played and sold. Trion's world-class team delivers high-quality, dynamic, and massively social games operated as live services across the biggest game genres and devices, including the critically acclaimed blockbuster, Rift™ and the highly-anticipated End of Nations™ and Defiance™. Trion is headquartered in Redwood City, Calif., with offices in San Diego, Calif., Austin, Texas, and at Trion Worlds Europe in London, UK.

About Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
With $107.5 billion in assets as of December 31, 2010, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan is the largest single-profession pension plan in Canada. Its direct investment program is one of the most comprehensive and successful in the world. An independent organization, it invests the pension fund's assets and administers the pensions of 295,000 active and retired teachers in Ontario. For more information visit www.otpp.com

About Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI)
Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI) is a strategic venture investor focused on innovative digital media technologies, products and distribution channels across the globe. BDMI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bertelsmann AG, a leading international media company with over $22 billion in revenues and over 100,000 employees in 50 countries. For more information, visit: www.bdmifund.com.

Bertelsmann is an international media company whose core divisions encompass television (RTL Group), book publishing (Random House), magazine publishing (Gruner + Jahr), and outsourcing services (Arvato) in 50 countries. In 2010, the company's businesses, with their 100,000 employees, generated revenues of Euro15.8 billion (U.S. $22 billion). Bertelsmann stands for a distinctive combination of creativity and entrepreneurship that empowers the creation of first-rate media, communications, and service offerings to inspire people around the world and to provide innovative solutions for customers. For more information, visit: www.bertelsmann.com.