THQ: WWE franchise rebranding boosted performance

Which would you be more likely to walk into a store and ask for? Something called "WWE 12" or something called "WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2011?" THQ reports that common sense has won out, as it attributes increased sales of the new title, in part, to the new naming convention.

"The successful rebranding of this annual franchise has led to higher sell-through to date," the company notes in its latest earnings release, "which is up approximately 20 percent on like-for-like platforms in North America versus the year-ago title." THQ didn't share the sell-through number, but it did disclose that it shipped more than 2.2 million copies since November. It sounds like a much more successful rebranding than "Hollywood Hogan."