London, UK – January 10, 2012 – Today, Ubisoft announced that The Settlers Online, a browser based free-to-play strategy game set in the Settlers Universe, has reached more than 1.5 million players in its initial rollout in Germany, US, France and Russia.

Developed by Ubisoft Blue Byte, The Settlers Online combines the popular gameplay elements of The Settlers franchise with brand new features suited to a persistent, web-based browser game. Players are able to settle a new city and join thousands of gamers already online to create or join guilds, trade resources and acquire and exchange bonuses to help each other out along the way to building a mighty kingdom.

The English language European Open Beta commences today, allowing players to experience the latest iteration of the Settlers brand for the very first time.

"The Settlers is a beloved, enduring franchise which strategy players from all over the world enjoy and it's exciting to be able to offer those fans a new way to interact with the Settlers Universe," said Thomas Paincon, EMEA FTP Publishing Director. "The success of the free-to-play model is very encouraging and with the rollout of the English language European Open Beta beginning today, we are very optimistic about the future of the Settlers Brand."

For more information about The Settlers Online and to join the European open beta, please visit: www.thesettlersonline.com

About Ubisoft

Ubisoft is a leading producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment products worldwide and has grown considerably through a strong and diversified line-up of products and partnerships. Ubisoft has offices in 26 countries and has sales in more than 55 countries around the globe. It is committed to delivering high-quality, cutting-edge video game titles to consumers. For the 2010-11 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1.039 billion. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.