Months after reporting sliding revenues and losing valuable relationships, Chinese online game company The9 is trying to rejuvenate itself via a deal to invest in mobile startups.

Days after Chinese online game developer and operator The9's president announced her departure from the helm of the company, the company has now gone ahead with plans for expansion with the acquisition of an American company.

Chinese online game developer The9 Limited announced that its president will not have her employment contract extended.

Not operating the World of Warcraft online game in China has hit The9 with a CNY79.2 million net loss in the second quarter ended June 30, 2009.

According to reports in local Chinese media, Chinese online game operators The9 and Kingsoft have reached a cooperation to jointly operate JX3 Online, an online game developed by Kingsoft.

The rumors have proven true: Blizzard Entertainment Inc. is not renewing its online game contract in China with The9, choosing instead to move the World of Warcraft game to a subsidiary of Chinese Web portal NetEase.com.

According to various local Chinese media reports, the two Chinese leading online game operators The9 and Shanda may jointly operator a webgame named Jiu Zhou Zhan Ji.

According to a Sina.com news report that quotes an unnamed insider, the Chinese online game operator The9 and the U.S. game company Blizzard Entertainment failed to reach an agreement for The9 to continue to hold the operating rights of World of Warcraft in China.

Chinese gaming company The9 (NCTY) has confirmed that Chen Xiaowei, former head of China.com, will be the new president of the company, effective May 16, 2008.

Various Chinese media are saying that The9's (NCTY) CEO Zhu Jun is going to quit, and Chen Xiaowei, former president and CFO of lackluster Web portal China.com, will replace him and work as president or CEO at The9, one of China's many game software firms.