News > Ubisoft Reports First-Quarter 2007-08 Sales Results
July 25, 2007
First quarter sales up 90.5% to €134 million ($180.66 U.S) and forecasts revised upwards for 2007-08 sales and current operating income
PARIS, July 24, 2007 - Today, Ubisoft, one of the world's largest video game publishers, reported its sales for the first fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2007.
Sales for the first quarter of 2007-08 came to €134 million ($180.66 U.S.), up 90.5%, or 94.5% at constant exchange rates, compared with the €70 million ($94.37 U.S.) recorded for the same period of 2006-07.
First-quarter sales for 2007-08 exceeded the forecast of approximately €120 million ($161.78 U.S.) announced when Ubisoft released its sales figures for fourth-quarter 2006-07. This performance was primarily attributed to the following:
o The continued success of Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six® Vegas on Xbox 360™ as well as its launch on PLAYSTATION®3 and PSP™.o The release of Surf's Up™, Prince of Persia®, Oblivion™ and Call of Juarez™.
o Back catalog games, which accounted for over one third of total sales for the period, particularly thanks to the Petz® series and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles™.
In first-quarter 2007-08, 79% of the Group's sales came from games for new-generation consoles, compared with 42% in the comparable prior-year period. This increase particularly reflects a sharp rise in sales of games for the PLAYSTATION®3 (21% of sales) and the Nintendo DS™ (16%, versus 3% in the first-quarter 2006-07).
Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft stated "Ubisoft has made a solid start to the year, and continued to win market share. Momentum was particularly strong during the period for European sales, which climbed 109% thanks to the ramp-up of new-generation consoles and the impact of PS3 game sales, including Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas and Oblivion. Our performance during this quarter has once again proved the relevance of our early positioning in the casual gaming sector, as demonstrated by the success of our DS and Wii games. Lastly, we were able to present one of the best game line-ups in the industry at this year's E3, in terms of both quality and diversity. Assassin's Creed, Brothers in Arms, Haze, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction and Tom Clancy's End War are some of the most highly anticipated games of the year. At the same time, our portfolio of upcoming casual games will enable us to strengthen and broaden our current offering, and to reach new consumers."
Outlook
Ubisoft expects second-quarter 2007-08 sales to remain stable at approximately €105 million ($141.56 U.S.) . The period will see the following main releases:
* Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®2 on PLAYSTATION®3, PC and PSP™.* The Settlers®6 for PC.
* Jam Sessions™ on Nintendo DS™.
* The European launch of the game based on the animated movie Surf's Up™.
Future games releases
* Far Cry® 2: The multi-million selling brand will be back for the fourth fiscal quarter of 2007-08, as announced on July 19, 2007.* Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction™: originally scheduled for the third fiscal quarter of 2007-08, this game will now be released in the fourth fiscal quarter.
Outlook for full-year 2007-08
In light of our first-quarter performance, which exceeded forecasts, as well as the positive feedback for our games at this year's E3, Ubisoft has raised its performance targets for full-year 2007-08. The Group's 2007-08 sales target is now approximately €825 million ($1,112.27 U.S.), and it expects current income before stock options to represent at least 9% of sales, compared with the previously-announced forecasts of €800 million ($1,078.56 U.S.) and at least 8% of sales.
*Eddie R Inzauto - Senior Editor, GameWad.com
