Today, Ubisoft® released its final sales figures for the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2011.
Sales
Sales for the third quarter of 2011-12 came to €652 million, up 8.8% (or 11.0% at constant exchange rates) compared with the €600 million recorded for the same period of 2010-11.
For the first nine months of fiscal 2011-12, sales totaled €900 million versus €861 million in the corresponding prior-year period, representing an increase of 4.5%, or 9.2% at constant exchange rates.
The Group’s final sales for third-quarter 2011-12 are in line with the estimate of around €650 million issued on January 10, 2012 and significantly higher than the guidance of between €580 million and €620 million announced when Ubisoft reported its results for the first half of fiscal 2011-12. This third-quarter performance reflects the following:
− A near-30% increase in sales of dance titles, with over 13 million sell-in units, which propelled Ubisoft’s worldwide market share in this high-growth segment to nearly 70%[1] in calendar 2011. Just Dance® – Ubisoft’s flagship casual franchise – was once again a star performer, continuing to attract increasing numbers of Wii™ players in addition to launching successfully on Kinect™ and seeing its popularity grow in Continental Europe and Asia. In December 2011, Just Dance 3 was the industry best-sku seller in the United States and in EMEA.
− Solid sales for Assassin’s Creed® Revelations, coming in at close to 7 million sell-in units, which slightly exceeded forecasts. The title was the industry 7th best seller in calendar 2011.
− A 159% increase in sales for the Online segment, driven notably by strong growth from Settlers® Online and Howrse® and robust performance from digital distribution.
In calendar 2011, Ubisoft also continued to win market share in the console games segment (8.6% versus 8.1% in 2010)1.
Yves Guillemot, Chief Executive Officer, stated “Our unique positioning as a creator of brands for both core and casual gamers enabled us to capture new market share in the console games segment in 2011 while significantly growing our online business. In fiscal 2012-13, we will start to capitalize on the large-scale investments we have undertaken more than three years ago, with the ramp-up of our offering for core gamers and notably a strong comeback into the major segment of shooter games. We also expect to see sustained growth in our online and digital revenue during the year. In the longer term we have solid opportunities for continued growth and profitability thanks to the arrival of the new generation of consoles and our plans to extend to all our titles the benefits and economic models of online games.”
Outlook
Sales for the fourth quarter of 2011-12
Sales for the last three months of 2011-12 are expected to come in at between €150 million and €180 million, reflecting fewer game releases scheduled for the period compared with fourth-quarter 2010-11 and a relatively soft start of the quarter.
Full-year 2011-12
The Company is standing by its recently upwardly-revised targets for full-year 2011-12, namely forecast sales of between €1,050 million and €1,080 million and current operating income2 of between €45 million and €65 million.
Full-year 2012-13
Ubisoft confirms it expects an increase in both sales and current operating income2 in 2012-13, as well as positive operating cash flow generation. This performance will be driven by the ramp-up of the Company’s offering for core gamers (including a strong comeback into the major segment of shooter games), as well as sustained growth in online and digital revenue.
Significant events
Market share: In calendar 2011, Ubisoft was the number 3 independent publisher in the United States with 8.4% market share (compared with number 3 and 7.3% one year earlier) and was also number 3 in Europe with 8.7% market share (compared with number 3 and 9.0%).
Contact
Investor Relations
Jean-Benoît Roquette
Head of Investor Relations
+ 33 1 48 18 52 39
Jean-benoit.roquette@ubisoft.com
2
Before stock-based compensation.
Disclaimer
This statement may contain estimated financial data, information on future projects and transactions and future business results/performance. Such forward-looking data are provided for estimation purposes only. They are subject to market risks and uncertainties and may vary significantly compared with the actual results that will be published. The estimated financial data have been presented to the Board of Directors and have not been audited by the Statutory Auditors. (Additional information is specified in the most recent Ubisoft Registration Document filed on June 28, 2011 with the French Financial Markets Authority (l’Autorité des marchés financiers)).
About Ubisoft:
Ubisoft is a leading producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment products worldwide and has grown considerably through a strong and diversified line-up of products and partnerships. Ubisoft has offices in 26 countries and has sales in more than 55 countries around the globe. It is committed to delivering high-quality, cutting-edge video game titles to consumers. For the 2010-11 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,039 million. To learn more, please visit: www.ubisoftgroup.com.
© 2012 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Imagine, Rayman, Horse Haven, I Am Alive, Rabbids, Ubisoft, and Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries. The Settlers is a trademark of Blue Byte Gmbh. Howrse is a trademark of Owlient. Motoheroz is a trademark of Redlynx. Blue Byte Gmbh, Redlynx, and Owlient are Ubisoft Entertainment companies.
© 2011 Triumph International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Michael Jackson name and associated logos are trademarks of Triumph International, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
© 2011 Gameloft. All Rights Reserved. Gameloft, the Gameloft logo, and Asphalt are trademarks of Gameloft in the US and/or other countries. All manufacturers, cars, motorbikes, names, brands, and associated imagery featured in Asphalt: Injection game are trademarks and/or copyrighted materials of their respective owners. Published by Ubisoft Entertainment under license from Gameloft. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
© 2011 Gameloft. All Rights Reserved. Gameloft and the Gameloft logo are trademarks of Gameloft in the US and/or other countries. Published by Ubisoft Entertainment under license from Gameloft. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
© 2004-2011 Q ENTERTAINMENT Inc. © 2004 Bandai/NBGI. Art Assets excluding Q ENTERTAINMENT Inc. and NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. elements © 2011
Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Based on the Lumines franchise owned by Q ENTERTAINMENT Inc. and NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. and is used by Ubisoft Entertaiment under license granted by Q Entertainment. LUMINES is a trademark of Q ENTERTAINMENT Inc. and NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc. and is used under license. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
© 2011 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Based on Prince of Persia® created by Jordan Mechner. Ubisoft and the logo Ubisoft are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries. Prince of Persia is a trademark of Waterwheel Licensing LLC in the US and/or other countries used under license.
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© 2011 Demiurge Game Development, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Published and distributed by Ubisoft Entertainment under license from Demiurge. Shoot Many Robots is a trademark of Demiurge Game Development, LLC and is used under license. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
[1] North America and EMEA. Excluding Asia. Sources: GFK, Nielsen, Chart-Track and NPD.