Turbine Selects Akamai for Digital Delivery of Online Games

Game Developers Conference 2005

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 9, 2005--
Turbine's Online Games, Game Updates, Video Trailers, Free Trials and Patches Will Be Delivered Via Akamai Media Delivery





Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM), the leading global service provider for accelerating content and business processes online, today announced that Turbine, Inc., a leading producer and publisher of online subscription entertainment, has chosen Akamai Media Delivery for secure, reliable delivery of its online assets. Akamai Media Delivery is ideal for delivering Turbine's games, patches, content updates and online promotional streaming trailers, and is also the solution of choice for 25 of the top 30 media and entertainment businesses(1).

Turbine, which develops, operates and publishes online games, needed a solution to meet the growing needs of its customers. Every day, Turbine customers download and play online video games, download free trials and video trailers, and get new game updates and patches. Given that many of these games and video trailers are very large, graphically intensive files, they can typically take a long time to download, with frequent failures. Turbine is addressing these issues by trusting Akamai to deliver its complete set of electronic downloads.

"We saw an opportunity for a respected online entertainment company like Turbine, and Akamai, a leader in the media delivery space, to partner to drive the online game market together," said Mike Hogan, vice president of technology and operations, Turbine, Inc. "Akamai is a quality service provider - and it's critical that our content is delivered over a quality distribution platform that helps us reach a global audience."

"By leveraging the Akamai platform, Turbine can offer its customers a great experience through fast, reliable delivery of the content they need," said Kris Alexander, senior media and entertainment solution manager, Akamai. "Providing a great online experience is important for ensuring customer satisfaction and growing a customer base. Akamai helps ensure this with a proven platform designed to enable storage and global delivery of games and other media assets online."

The demand for media of all types--music, movies, games and more is growing rapidly. Fickle consumers want to access media how they want, when they want and where they want. To be successful, businesses need to be on par or better than traditional delivery options. Akamai Media Delivery offers businesses a scalable and reliable platform to enable the delivery, protection and monetization of a range of digital media assets, including music, movies, games, broadcasts, TV shows, and events--without adding or needing to maintain infrastructure.

About Turbine, Inc.

Turbine, Inc. is a premier producer, publisher and operator of online subscription entertainment and is headquartered in Westwood, Mass. With studios on two coasts, the Company is the largest privately held online games company in North America. Turbine's catalogue includes some of the most famous online entertainment brands, including Asheron's Call(R), Dungeons & Dragons(R) Online and The Lord of the Rings(TM): Middle-Earth(TM) Online. For more information on Turbine and its services, please visit www.turbine.com.

About Akamai

Akamai(R) is the leading global service provider for accelerating content and business processes online. More than 1,300 organizations have formed trusted relationships with Akamai, improving their revenue and reducing costs by maximizing the performance of their online businesses. Leveraging the Akamai EdgePlatform, these organizations gain business advantage today, and have the foundation for the emerging Web solutions of tomorrow. Akamai is "The Trusted Choice for Online Business." For more information, visit www.akamai.com.

(1) Based on 2003 revenues for US-based media and entertainment companies.

Akamai Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act

The release contains information about future expectations, plans and prospects of Akamai Technologies, Inc.'s management that constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors including, but not limited to, the effects of any attempts to intentionally disrupt our services or network by unauthorized users or others, failure to have available sufficient transmission capacity, a failure of Akamai's network infrastructure and other factors that are discussed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and other documents periodically filed with the SEC.

TURBINE, Asheron's Call, Asheron's Call Dark Majesty, Fallen Kings, Turbine Engine, Asheron's Call: Throne of Destiny and Asheron's Call 2: Legions are registered trademarks or trademarks of Turbine, Inc. in the United States or other jurisdictions. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

We're looking for six to eight Asheron's Call players to take part in Asheron's Call: Throne of Destiny focus groups on this coming Saturday, March 12, as well as the following Saturday, March 19. The focus group will take place from 9AM until 3PM at our studio in Santa Monica, just west of Los Angeles. Turbine will be providing lunch.

To be eligible to take part in one of these focus groups, you must:

- Be able to arrive in Santa Monica at 9AM and stay until 3PM on Saturday March 12, Saturday March 19, or both days.
- Be a current Asheron's Call subscriber.
- Be 18 years or older.

If you meet these requirements and you're interested in attending, please email ibn@turbine.com with the subject header "FOCUS GROUP". Include your name, mailing address, telephone number, which days you can attend, and a brief description of your history playing Asheron's Call. Participants will be required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

N3 ~ Kwip's "I Neither Pulled NOR Pushed The Lever!"

"When I finally located the dungeon I needed (which was a chore in and of itself, let me tell you), I jumped in, ready and eager with my awesome level 4 buffs and deadly fire arrows at the ready!

At first, it was VERY encouraging - there were bodies EVERYWHERE. It looked like Teth when that Scarab bug was being fought over."

Kwip enjoys the new 'lever' dungeon Click here to read!

Thursday March 3, 6:00AM - 9:00AM PST
All worlds will be brought down to resolve a server stability issue

All worlds and login servers should be back online as of now.

Again please let me apologize on behalf of the entire team for this extended period of downtime.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

NetOps believes they have a fix for this issue and are beginning implementation. Currently we hope to be able to bring login and billing servers online by 2PM PST / 5PM EST / 10PM UTC.

Again we apologize to all of our customers for this unplanned extension of today's scheduled maintenance.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

Maintenance status update

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This morning's billing maintenance is taking longer than expected. We should have another status update by 10:00AM PST / 1:00PM EST / 6:00PM UTC. We apologize to any players who are inconvenienced by this longer-than-anticipated downtime.

One note: Today's update will most likely clear the text stored in the username field of the Turbine Launcher. This is an expected effect, simply re-enter your username and you will be able to log in normally once the billing servers have come back online.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

We are continuing to work on resolving this issue, but we have no ETA at this time. Will update again in within 45 minutes.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

The Tournament Part III

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We've just posted Part III of The Tournament.

After you read it, I'd recommend re-reading the following previously-posted Lore articles:

Assassination

The Malika and the Individual

These provide additional insight into Viamontian society on the verge of their civil war.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

Billing Options update -- American Express and Discover

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just an update to let folks know that we are now accepting both American Express and Discover cards, in addition to Mastercard and Visa, as payment methods for Asheron's Call subscriptions.
__________________
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

Upcoming Server Downtimes
Tuesday March 1, 6:00AM - 8:00AM PST
All worlds and billing servers will be brought down during this time for scheduled maintenance.

Thursday March 3, 6:00AM - 9:00AM PST
All worlds will be brought down to resolve a server stability issue



---
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

We've just posted Part I of The Tournament:

Quote:
It occurs to me that I have not written much regarding the Duke's daughter, Eleonora du Bellenesse. While she was born long before I entered the Duke's service, and has been the source of much consternation for the entirety of the Duke's household, her life did not intersect much with my own until recently. As long as I have known her, she has been nothing more than the rebellious, morose daughter of my Knight's lord. I never thought more of her than I did any other spoiled girl of noble birth. I certainly had no idea the thoughts she entertained within her tortured mind. Nor did I ever suspect the plans she had for the future of the kingdom.

Read the tale, and then let us know what you think!

---
Alex "Ibn" Beckers
AC1 Online Community Relations

By now you've probably seen the press release that Turbine put out yesterday describing our exciting new Member Rewards program.

(If not, read it here!)

Got any questions or comments about this announcement? We've set up a feedback thread for just this topic!

Secondly, I've just posted my running log of the Press Preview that Turbine held in San Francisco last Thursday.

Click here to read it!

Any questions or comments? Post 'em here.

TURBINE KICKS OFF MEMBER LOYALTY, BETA REWARDS PROGRAM



WESTWOOD, Mass. -- Feb. 23, 2005 -- Turbine, Inc., a premier provider of online subscription entertainment, today announced that it has launched a member rewards program as a way to say thank you to its dedicated and passionate online games service members. The new member rewards program, which went live on Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2005, offers anyone with an active subscription to a Turbine service the opportunity to become eligible for future Turbine beta testing programs before the general public.

"Turbine's beta rewards is a great way for us to show our appreciation to the thousands of players who immerse themselves in Turbine's online worlds," said Jeffrey Anderson, president and CEO, Turbine, Inc. "We want to reward Turbine's loyal players by offering them the chance to be among the first to see and try out the new worlds that we produce."

How it Works:

Members of a Turbine service, such as Asheron's Call® or Asheron's Call 2: Fallen Kings®, may register for the program via a link on their service profile page. Prior to an upcoming beta program's open phase, Turbine will create a pool of eligible members from those who registered and meet Turbine's criteria. From this pool, select members will be invited to participate in a pending game beta. Members who are not selected for play testing will remain in the pool and could be selected for later beta activities or opportunities.

Program Requirements:

To qualify for the Turbine Member Rewards program, members must be registered for a Turbine world through the company's new billing system. In addition, they must be actively subscribed to at least one Turbine service for at least six consecutive months in good standing.

If members have more than one eligible service account, such as a subscription to both AC and AC2, each account is eligible for its own program membership.

For an FAQ on Turbine Member Rewards, head to http://www.fuzeqna.com/asheronscall/consumer/kbdetail.asp?kbid=919.

About Turbine, Inc.

Turbine, Inc. is a premier producer, publisher and operator of online subscription entertainment and is headquartered in Westwood, Mass. With studios on two coasts, the Company is the largest privately held online games company in North America. Turbine's catalogue includes some of the most famous online entertainment brands, including Asheron's Call®, Dungeons & Dragons® Online and The Lord of the RingsTM: Middle-EarthTM Online. For more information on Turbine and its services, please visit www.turbine.com.

# # #

TURBINE, Asheron's Call, Asheron's Call Dark Majesty, Fallen Kings, Turbine Engine, Asheron's Call: Throne of Destiny and Asheron's Call 2: Legions are registered trademarks or trademarks of Turbine, Inc. in the United States or other jurisdictions. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Uninscribe events for Friday 25th Feb and Saturday 26th Feb.

I have tried to stagger the times on each world to allow European. East Coast and Pacific time zone players a chance to attend at least one event.

Location Holtburg Meeting Hall
Strict duration of 30 mins at each location to allow Leo's to move around.

Times are in EST (PST, GMT)

Wintersebb
Fri 17:00 (14:00, 22:00)
Sat 13:00 (10:00, 18:00)
Sat 21:00 (18:00, 02:00)

Verdantine
Fri 18:00 (15:00, 23:00)
Sat 14:00 (11:00, 19:00)
Sat 22:00 (19:00, 03:00)


Thistledown
Fri 19:00 (16:00, 00:00)
Sat 15:00 (12:00, 20:00)
Sat 23:00 (20:00, 04:00)

Morningthaw
Fri 20:00 (17:00, 01:00)
Sat 16:00 (13:00, 21:00)
Sat 00:00 (21:00, 05:00)

Frostfell
Fri 21:00 (18:00, 02:00)
Sat 17:00 (14:00, 22:00)
Sat 02:00 (23:00, 07:00)

Leafcull
Fri 22:00 (19:00, 03:00)
Sat 09:00 (06:00, 14:00)
Sat 01:00 (22:00, 06:00)


Harvestgain
Fri 23:00 (20:00, 04:00)
Sat 10:00 (07:00, 15:00)
Sat 18:00 (15:00, 23:00)

Solclaim
Fri 00:00 (21:00, 05:00)
Sat 11:00 (08:00, 16:00)
Sat 19:00 (16:00, 00:00)
__________________
Chimaera
Jolt Live Ops Manager - USA

Hi everyone,

Okay anyone that is having this issue, please try the following:


Go to your launcher.ini file in your Asheron's Call Directory (if the install was default it is C:\Program Files\Turbine Entertainment Software\Asheron's Call )

Once you have your launcher.ini file opened, look at the serveraddress. It will likely look like this: serveraddress=gls.ac1.turbine.com

Edit this line so it reads: serveraddress=gls.ac1.turbinegames.com

Save a copy of your original launcher.ini file somewhere seperately from this Asheron's Call directory.

Close the launcher.ini file and save the changes.

Now the launcher.ini file in your Asheron's Call directory will have this as a serveraddress: gls.ac1.turbinegames.com

Once this change is made, you should no longer be having this "can't access authentication servers" problem.

Please let us know if otherwise, and again thanks for your patience.

I've just received news that these issues should now be receding for most players.

Our Operations staff found a fault in the way some ISP’s record servers that control access to Turbine’s login system. Working with the technical staff of several different ISPs, we were able to correct this fault and restore the appropriate access.

Due to the nature of the issue, very isolated incidents of failed connections will still happen. We will be monitoring this issue closely for the next few days. Please call our help desk if you are still having problems.

We apologize again for the downtime; your patience has been most appreciated!
__________________
Jason 'Aldryth' Carroll
AC1 Online Community Relations

Authentication server errors

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some users are receiving an 'authentication server' error upon attempting to log in. We are actively looking into this problem and hope to have a resolution ready as soon as possible. We do not yet have an ETA for when this will occur.

Further information will be posted here as soon as it becomes available to us.
__________________
Jason 'Aldryth' Carroll
AC1 Online Community Relations