PopCap’s Bejeweled Franchise Hits 25 Million Units Sold Mark

That’s ‘one sold every ten seconds’ or ‘more than 6 billion hours of gameplay’ since 2000

Dublin, Ireland – August 19, 2008 — PopCap Games, the leading developer and publisher of casual games, can today confirm hitting 25 million unit sales of its flagship franchise, Bejeweled (that’s Bejeweled and Bejeweled 2 collectively) based on updated information from distribution partners across Web, mobile, retail, in-flight and other channels. This figure equates to a Bejeweled game being sold every 10 seconds.

To celebrate this phenomenal statistic, PopCap reveals some of the finer ‘facets’ of the most popular casual video game of the 21st century:

“Considering we tried to sell Bejeweled outright to more than one industry giant back in the early days of our company, and got no takers even after reducing our asking price to $60,000, this little game has done all right for itself,” said Jason Kapalka, chief creative officer and co-founder of PopCap, and the original designer of Bejeweled and its sequel. “I vividly recall prospective buyers telling us ‘It’s not even a game,’ while showing us the door,” Kapalka laughed.

More than 350 million copies of the Bejeweled/Bejeweled 2 have been downloaded from the Web, accounting for nearly a third of the 1 billion-plus downloads of all PopCap titles. Tens of millions of copies of Bejeweled have been installed on mobile phones worldwide, more than 25 million units of the game have been sold across all platforms (amounting to over $300 million in consumer spending over the history of the game*) and now Bejeweled 2 is also available in over 30 UK retail stores including ASDA, Borders, Currys, Game, PC World, Woolworths.

The Bejeweled franchise is also one of the most ubiquitous and accessible in the history of video games, with versions of the game available for Web, PCs and Macs, mobile phones, Xbox and PlayStation consoles, PDAs and Blackberrys, iPods and iPhone, in-flight on leading airlines, on-demand TV systems in hotels – even scratch-off lottery tickets in many states. All told, Bejeweled and Bejeweled 2 have collectively been enjoyed for an estimated 6 billion hours – that’s 684,000 YEARS - the equivalent of 60 people playing the game 24 hours a day since the last Ice Age 11,400 years ago.

Bejeweled 2 is currently available in over 30 UK retail stores including ASDA, Borders, Currys, Game, PC World, Woolworths. Or you can trial for free or purchase online at www.popcap.com

About PopCap
PopCap Games (www.popcap.com) is the leading multi-platform provider of “casual games” — fun, easy-to-learn, captivating computer games that appeal to everyone from age 6 to 106. Based in Seattle, Washington, PopCap was founded in 2000 and has a worldwide staff of over 200 people in Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Vancouver, B.C., Dublin, Ireland and Shanghai. Its games have been downloaded more than 1 billion times by consumers worldwide, and its flagship title, Bejeweled®, has sold more than 25 million units across all platforms. Constantly acclaimed by consumers and critics, PopCap’s games are played on the Web, desktop computers, myriad mobile devices (cell phones, smartphones, PDAs, Pocket PCs, iPod and more), popular game consoles (such as Xbox), and in-flight entertainment systems. PopCap is the only casual games developer with leading market share across all major sales channels, including Web portals, retail stores, mobile phones and MP3 players, and game device manufacturers.