• June 30, 2008

PopCap Games has opened a new office in Shanghai, China, and has named James Gwertzman vice president of Asia-Pacific.

In his new role, Gwertzman will oversee the casual gaming company's operations throughout the Asia-Pacific region, leading the game and business development teams, artists and other staffers. In the past year, Seattle-based PopCap quietly established business development teams in Korea and Singapore, and named Giordano Bruno Contestabile senior business development director for Asia-Pacific. The company has also had a partnership with Japan-based Square Enix since 2006.

"We've had a modest 'stealth' presence in the area for two years now, but now we're ready to open a fully staffed office," Gwertzman said. "The casual games space in Asia is totally different than in North America or Europe, but if we can get it right, it's a tremendous opportunity. With more than 400 million Internet users, the wired population of Asia is bigger than that of either North America or Europe, and casual games are very popular throughout the region."

Gwertzman, who most recently served as director of business development with PopCap, will relocate his family to Shanghai in the coming months.

--Tameka Kee