Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase today announced that the license agreement for World of Warcraft in mainland China has been renewed for an additional three years, building on the two companies’ nearly three years of existing cooperation on the game. The new agreement also sets the stage for the Chinese release of World of Warcraft’s upcoming fourth expansion set, Mists of Pandaria. For more information, see the press release.

• A world map of the isle of Pandaria, including two previously unannounced zones: the Dread Wastes and the Krasarang Wilds.

• A bestiary of Pandaria’s wondrous and monstrous races, like the tyrannical mogu and the wise jinyu.

• Revised zone & dungeon pages, featuring videos of the Wandering Isle, Jade Forest, and Valley of the Four Winds.

• Updated monk and pandaren pages -- check out the female pandaren, human monk, and more.

The End of Days approaches…. Diablo III is set to launch on May 15, 2012, and you can be ready to play the minute the servers go live by pre-purchasing the game digitally on Battle.net today. Simply complete the digital pre-sale process, and your account will be flagged for automatic access to Diablo III when it launches at 12:01 a.m. PDT on May 15.

If you would rather play Diablo III for FREE, the World of Warcraft Annual Pass is still available for a limited time... but don’t delay, because the Annual Pass offer ends at 12:01 a.m. PDT on May 1, 2012.

Check out the official press release for further details on the upcoming launch of Diablo III, or head to the Diablo III pre-sales page on Battle.net to pre-purchase your digital copy now.

Want a shot at naming a territory on the upcoming RISK: StarCraft^® game board? If you’re the lucky winner of USAopoly’s sweepstakes, you’ll get the opportunity to do just that. Visit USAopoly’s Facebook page between March 12 and March 19 to learn more and to enter, but be sure to read the official rules before you do.

Wage fierce battles across the Koprulu sector and vie for galactic domination in a version of RISK that’s set in the chaotic StarCraft universe. Choose from Raynor, Valerian, Artanis, Zeratul, Kerrigan, or Za’gara, and crush your enemies with their military strategies and accompanying terran, protoss, or zerg forces. With 42 otherworldly territories at stake, there are no perfect moves, no guarantees, and no lasting alliances -- what will you risk to secure victory?

RISK: StarCraft comes with over 290 playing pieces, including three race-specific bases: the terran Command Center, a protoss Nexus, and a zerg Hatchery. RISK: StarCraft launches this summer and will be available in North American specialty stores for a suggested retail price of $49.95. The game is designed for 3 to 6 players and is recommended for ages 10 and up.

The Scroll of Resurrection has just been infused with powerful glyphs, making it more potent than ever before. For a limited time, you can earn a free faction mount when you use a Scroll of Resurrection to bring a friend or former guildmate back to World of Warcraft.

Battle.net Balance is now live! As we announced previously, Battle.net Balance is a new feature that gives players an alternate way to purchase Blizzard digital products and services directly through their Battle.net accounts. Players are now able add to their Battle.net Balance using a variety of payment methods, and then use that balance toward Blizzard Entertainment products and services such as World of Warcraft realm transfers, character name changes, and other paid services; as well as digital versions of select Blizzard games, including Diablo II and StarCraft II. In the future, players will be also able to use Battle.net Balance for the digital World of Warcraft Battle Chest and WoW digital upgrades and to purchase digital products through the online Blizzard Store, including World of Warcraft game-time codes and Pet Store pets and mounts. In addition, with the upcoming launch of Diablo III, players will have the option to use Battle.net Balance to buy and sell items in the game’s currency-based auction house.

For more information, check out the Battle.net Balance FAQ, or head to the Battle.net Balance page in Account Management to manage your balance.

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce the 2012 Battle.net World Championship, a major global eSports event featuring some of the best pro-gaming competition in the world.Slated to take place in Asia toward the end of 2012, the Battle.net World Championship will host this year’s StarCraft II and World of Warcraft Arena World Championship tournaments. Blizzard gamers and eSports fans from around the world will be invited to attend and witness some of the most skilled pro players on the planet battle it out for cash and glory.

We’re excited to be showcasing Blizzard eSports on a truly global stage this year. We're also heavily focused on getting Diablo III, Mists of Pandaria, and Heart of the Swarm into players’ hands as soon as possible. In light of our jam-packed schedule, we’ve decided to hold the next BlizzCon in 2013.

More details about the 2012 Battle.net World Championship and BlizzCon 2013, including specific dates and locations, will be coming in the months ahead.

From everyone at Blizzard to you and yours, have a safe and happy holiday season!

To help celebrate, we've prepared a Holiday Card Gallery featuring a festive Diablo III card. Enjoy!

His bicycle tires don't run flat; they explode. When news breaks, he fixes it. His collection of vintage Blizzard memorabilia could fill a garage... and it does. They made a Diablo creature in his honor, but it was deemed too frightening to include in the game. The people of Orgrimmar love him, even though he plays Alliance. He is the most interesting web content manager in the world. He doesn't always like to be in the spotlight, but when he does, Geoff prefers to be featured in a Day in the Life article.

Read the article about a day in the life of Web Content Manager Geoff Fraizer now!

At Blizzard, we love running contests! Contests give you a chance to be creative and win prizes, and they give us a chance to display the awesome results of your creativity. You can always find our current contests on the Blizzard Contest page.

We also run contests on Facebook and Twitter -- you can find links to our social media pages listed on the right side of our contact page.

Here are some of our current contests:

Holiday Dessert -- Ends December 20, 2011
Contest Type: Baking
Prize: Prize package

The ANZ Diablo III Beta-Key Twitter Contest -- Ends December 31, 2011
Contest Type: Writing
Note: Residents of Australia and New Zealand only; check Eligibility
Prize: Diablo III beta key

Student Art Contest -- Ends January 15, 2012
Contest Type: Environment Art
Note: United States and Canada College or University Students only; check Eligibility
Prize: Three month mentorship by World of Warcraft art team, Prize package

Core Hound Pup Adoption Campaign -- Ends January 26, 2012
Contest Type: World of Warcraft Screenshot
Prize: Apple iPad