Atari sales and losses down in first half, online revenue up

The financial results for the first half of Atari's fiscal year have been released. The company reported net revenue of €29.6 million ($40.5 million) for the period, a substantial decline from the €68.5 million ($93.8 million) reported during the same period last year. Revenue was "in line with expectations" however, given Atari's new focus on "fewer but more profitable games."

Speaking of profit, income has improved, though Atari isn't back in the black just yet. The company posted an operating loss of €8.5 million ($11.6 million), a considerable improvement over the €19.9 million ($27.2 million) loss during the same period last year. Atari expects income for the second half of the year to be "slightly negative to break even."

Highlighting the shift toward more online and downloadable games, Atari noted that online revenue including subscription fees for Star Trek Online and Champions Online totaled €12.9 million ($17.6 million), comprising 43.6 percent of its overall revenue. During the same period last year, online revenue totaled only €1.8 million ($2.4 million), or 2.6 percent of overall revenue.