US publisher-developer THQ today announced the creation of THQ Partners, a programme that will give access to THQ's distribution network to "select" partners. THQ, owner of the Saints Row and Red Faction franchises, has appointed Tim Walsh, formerly of in-game advertising firm IGA Worldwide, to head the new THQ Partners unit.

　　Hopefully, THQ's partnerships will be more durable than those featured in its WWE games. Developers and publishers "who don't have the benefit of our extensive retail and online sales operations," will be targeted by the programme, according to Ian Curran, executive vice president of the firm's global publishing wing.

　　Though initial details on the partnership programme are few, they suggest a plan akin to EA Partners, created by EA in 2003 to grow its business via co-publishing relationships with third-party developers. EA Partners has since brought Valve's Left 4 Dead series and Harmonix's Rock Band to market and will publish the first title from Respawn Entertainment, the independent studio founded by Jason West and Vince Zampella after being fired from Activision-owned Infinity Ward. Yesterday, EA revealed the EA Partners scheme will be bringing a new property from Ratchet & Clank developer Insomniac to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

　　THQ, which published last year's 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand and UFC Undisputed 2009, hopes its own partnership program will further bolster its bottom line. Early this month it posted a company loss of $9.6 million (£6.7 million), a significant improvement on last year's $387.7 million (£269.2 million) shortfall in the wake of the global economic crisis.