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SouthPeak to stop selling 'My Baby' during legal issues
While SouthPeak continues its legal dispute with My Baby developer Nobilis and publisher Majesco over the rights to the franchise and My Baby 3, the publisher will discontinue selling My Baby Girl and My Baby First Steps. SouthPeak Chairman Terry Phillips stated in an investor call today, "We firmly believe we are the rightful holder of the intellectual property to this franchise." He continued that the company is currently in court proceedings to resolve, what he calls, the wrongful termination of its agreements with Nobilis and is seeking damages for the developer soliciting the My Baby 3 rights to Majesco. He concluded that the company plans to "vigorously" defend its position. The My Baby franchise has been a "significant" part of the company's revenue, according to Phillips. So, missing My Baby 3 -- along with the other titles -- from the portfolio isn't helping SouthPeak's already glum financials.
'My Baby' sold by SouthPeak -- one million times
SouthPeak Interactive may be a little wobbly on paper and in the courtroom, but its My Baby franchise was born to run. The publisher's three My Baby games have sold over one million units in the US and Canada. Yes, one million units over three games may not sound so impressive, but we're talking about a series that retails for $30 and likely didn't cost much more to develop. The games are meant to appeal to girls ages 6 to 11, allowing "gamers" to start with a newborn in My Baby Boy and My Baby Girl, then transitioning them to "experience the joys of parenthood through to the toddler years in My Baby First Steps" After that, they'll be all set for the real thing with 16 and Pregnant.
SouthPeak doubles game sales in 2009 amid dropping profits
Though SouthPeak is keen to point out that its net revenues rose from last year by $7.2 million, the company's profits for the year remain firmly in the red, with a $12.1 million posted loss for the 2009 fiscal year ending June 30. SouthPeak's loss report comes confusingly paired with a 100% increase in units sold from fiscal year 2008 (from 1.2 to 2.4 million units) -- 2009's posted $12.1 net loss gets explained away by "approximately $12.5 million invested in game development and intellectual property for future title releases," among other things. The report also allows "$1.6 million of expenses relating to the Gamecock acquisition," hopefully some of which went to paying Gamecock debt now owed by SouthPeak -- this on top of another $4.6 million or so for "charges relating to write-downs on software values and sequel right values to certain titles." Unsurprisingly, the publisher hopes that upcoming titles Two Worlds 2 and My Baby: First Steps, as well as a "highly-anticipated sequel to Dementium," will bolster its next fiscal year. We're just hoping the games the company does sell will actually garner some profit this time around.
