Turbine Entertainment Software Corp., a leading developer and publisher of online subscription entertainment, announced today that it raised $18 million in a round of financing from Highland Capital Partners, Polaris Venture Partners and the company’s existing investors. The funding will be used for the continued growth and expansion of Turbine’s award-winning games and entertainment.

“The capital provided by Highland and Polaris is a testament to the strength of the online gaming market and the faith they have in Turbine as the leading provider of online subscription entertainment,” said Jeffrey Anderson, president and CEO, Turbine Entertainment Software. “Both Highland and Polaris are partners who are committed to Turbine’s online games for the long term. Their capital investment will allow us to expand our business into new technologies, territories, markets and platforms.”

With nearly a decade of experience in the online gaming industry, Turbine selected the Highland-Polaris team following a comprehensive assessment of premiere venture capital firms throughout the country. Highland and Polaris join Turbine at a time when online gaming has become one of the fastest growing and most profitable business opportunities in the technology and entertainment sectors.

“The online entertainment segment of the video gaming industry is exploding and Turbine is the best company positioned to meet that demand,” explained Bob Davis, partner at Highland Capital Partners and former CEO of Terra Lycos. “Turbine is doing everything right with its business by transitioning from a developer into service publisher with its newest franchises.”

Turbine Entertainment Software develops and publishes massively multi-player online role playing (MMORPG) video games. The company is best known for the success of its award winning Asheron’s Call® franchise, which is distributed by Microsoft. Furthermore, Turbine recently began development on The Lord of the Rings: Middle-Earth™ Online, the first online game world based on the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien, with Vivendi Universal Games.

“Polaris has a history of working with companies that become leaders in their respective industries, and we believe Turbine will be no exception,” said Steve Arnold, managing general partner, Polaris Venture Partners. “The company has one of the early successes in massively multiplayer games under its belt, and two of the largest fantasy franchises on its development roster. We’re excited about Turbine’s prospects and look forward to working with its management team to exploit them.”

Part of the capital investment will be used to fund Turbine’s first self-published project, Dungeons & Dragons® Online, the only online role-playing video game to be based on the world famous Dungeons & Dragons franchise. For that title, Turbine has partnered with Atari for retail marketing and distribution.