Disney pushes into Asia with purchase of South Korea’s Studio Ex

disney studio ex

Hoping to push into the Asian game market, Disney is acquiring South Korean game developer Studio Ex, according to AllThingsD.

Disney did not disclose the terms. Studio Ex hasn’t yet launched any games. But this aggressive push into the Asian market with free-to-play multiplayer games includes David Moon, the former director of game services at NHN, a big game destination in Asia.

“The Walt Disney Company has acquired Studio Ex, a game development studio in Korea that focuses on multiplayer, free-to-play online and mobile games,” Disney said, in a statement. “Through a stock purchase agreement, Studio Ex is now a wholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company reporting into Disney Interactive.”

The studio will make online and mobile games based on new brands or existing Disney properties. Disney also has deals with South Korea’s Smilegate and Zipi Studio. Disney’s big acquisitions in games in the past include Club Penguin, Playdom and Tapulous.

Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat at VentureBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.