Korea-based MMO developer NCsoft has appointed their chief financial officer, Jaeho Lee, as the new CEO of NCsoft West, the company's recently formed European and North American subsidiary.
NCsoft West was formed last September, unifying NC Interactive, NC Europe, NC Austin and ArenaNet under one group based in Seattle. Lee is replacing Chris Chung, who began his tenure with NCsoft at ArenaNet and went on to become the CEO of NC Interactive.
Reached for comment earlier this week, NCSoft's corporate PR director Jae Sung Lee, told Kotaku that the move helps solidify the communication between the two groups.
"As part of the corporation's global strategy, global management grows increasingly important, and the need to work together across business units becomes paramount to our success," he said. " This personnel change increases our ability in each market to remain competitive."
Chris Chung will remain on the executive team at NCsoft West.
The move comes as NCsoft reported a net income jump of 315 percent year-to-year in their first quarter, with the company's Aion game bringing in a massive 42.6 billion Korean won.
"Aion has solidified its position as a new growth force without encroaching sales of the Lineage series," said Jaeho Lee said. "Starting with its service in China in Q2, we are ready for a successful launch of this triple-A franchise in Japan, Taiwan, North America and Europe within the second half of the year."
NCsoft expects to release big updates for Lineage and Lineage II worldwide in the coming months and will begin beta tests in Eastern for Punch Monster, Dragonica, Steel Dog and Metal Black within the year.