q1-2013
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Microsoft announces Q1 earnings with $5.31 billion in profit, braces for Windows 8 surge
It's Microsoft's turn at quiet-before-the-storm quarterly results, and that's evident in the fiscal first quarter earnings it just dropped on our laps. The Redmond team is reporting $16.01 billion in revenue, but a more modest than usual $5.31 billion in profit over the summer -- while it's healthier than the Q4 loss stemming from the aQuantive write-off, it's not as impressive as the $7.2 billion profit from a year ago. While a tough PC market is partly to blame, it's equally hard to say that Microsoft couldn't have done better. There's a real chance that some of its customers have been holding back on purchases in anticipation of the Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 launches; it's already setting aside $1.36 billion in revenue for Windows and Office upgrades. The company is unquestionably preparing itself for a giant spike in demand once at least Windows 8 rolls around later this month, so we'd say that the real litmus test will be the results we get after the holidays.
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon delayed to 'first half of 2013'
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon apparently won't be spooking Nintendo 3DS owners until some point in the 'first half of 2013," says Nintendo. The game was originally planned for a holiday 2012 launch, per an announcement at this year's E3, but now won't be making that window. It's unclear if the game was delayed outside of "The Americas," as Nintendo only released information on that version.Nintendo didn't give a reason for the delay, nor did the company give any more specific of a launch date for the game. Spooky business indeed.
Nikon makes $201 million quarterly profit, nearly 50 percent drop from last year, blames strong yen
Nikon's odd financial calendar means that the camera maker is announcing its first quarter results for 2013. The confusingly-dated documents show that it isn't having the best Spring / Summer, since while it pulled in a net profit of $201 million, that figure is down nearly 50 percent on the $392 million it made in the same period last year. It sold a record number of interchangeable-lens cameras, lenses and a good number of compact cameras, but that was offset against the high cost of the yen. Its other businesses, Precision Equipment and Instruments both suffered thanks to Government spending cuts, a "harsh business climate" and the now age-old problem of the high exchange rate. It's expecting the situation to remain the same in the next three months, with booming camera sales weight against losses in its other businesses -- with a projected profit of $143 million anticipated in Q3.
Sega Sammy sees losses in gaming sector, StarHorse3 sales continue unabated
Sega Sammy Holdings is a ginormous company; one that, on the whole, is doing pretty well for itself, having ended the first quarter of fiscal 2013 in the black to the tune of ¥2.544 billion -- a massive increase over the ¥2.224 billion loss the company reported last year. When broken down by section, however, Sega Sammy's "Consumer Business" segment didn't fare as well as the company's pachinko/pachislot and amusement center-oriented segments.The Consumer Business division, the part of the company responsible for console and handheld gaming, posted an operating loss of ¥1.559 billion for the three month period ending on June 30, but that's actually up 59 percent from the ¥3.856 billion loss reported for the same period last year. Consumer Business shipped a total of 1.3 million units during Q1, with more units shipping to Europe (700,000) than to the US, Japan and elsewhere combined (400,000 and 230,000 respectively).Honestly, we think it'd do wonders for Sega Sammy's bottom line if they'd start selling the convertible horse racing loveseats they make for "StarHorse3 Season Ⅰ A NEW LEGEND BEGINS" (above) on their own, or license out the design to movie theaters.
Panasonic's 2013 Q1: things are looking up with a $164 million profit
Panasonic's financial year runs from summer to summer, so its first-quarter results for 2013 just hit the wire. The figures proudly show that the company has managed to turn around the losses it suffered so badly in the previous period -- with $23 billion in turnover generating a tidy profit of $164 million. While sales dropped by six percent compared to the first three months of the year, it's been reducing fixed costs and restructuring each segment of the business to ensure a return to profit making despite the worsening financial crisis in Europe. The company's even been able to stick some cash into the savings account, tucking $16.6 million into the piggy bank for a rainy day.
Indie shooter 'Gunblitz' blasts Ouya in March, PC in September
Will the new Ouya game console have at least one shmup? Oh, yeah. Indiana-based developer Rapture Game Studios plans to put its first game, the horizontal scrolling shooter Gunblitz, on the diminutive Android console in March.Before that console is finally Kickstarted into existence, Rapture plans to put Gunblitz on regular-sized PCs in September. Rapture has already released a demo of this PC version – thereby anticipating the pseudo-free-to-play model of the Ouya, and letting you try the game out.
Nintendo posts $220 million net loss for first quarter
Another year, another not-great first quarter for Nintendo. Although not as bad as last year's (and the year before's) net loss of ¥26 billion ($332M), the company still reported a loss of ¥17.23 billion ($220 million).Nintendo acknowledged 3DS sales had "only reached" 1.86 million for the quarter, hitting 19 million units sold in its lifetime. On the upside, the company isn't selling the hardware at a loss anymore."Compared to the quarter a year earlier, global sales of Nintendo 3DS hand-held game hardware increased 162 percent, while Nintendo 3DS software rose 63 percent," Nintendo noted. "In addition, the company announced that as of July 25, 2012, it was no longer selling Nintendo 3DS hardware below manufacturing costs."At this point, everyone is waiting to see how the Wii U performs when it launches later this year.
Gears of War: Judgment launching on March 19, 2013 [update]
Gears of War: Judgment will see Baird and Cole head to the clink at some point in March 2013, according to Epic Games Director of Production Rod Fergusson. The news was revealed to G4's X-Play and confirmed on the show's Twitter account – apparently Fergusson wouldn't allow any more specifics about when the game will be launched.Gears of War: Judgment follows Baird and Cole as they deal with events preceding the main Gears of War trilogy. Polish studio People Can Fly is working on the game in collaboration with Epic Games proper.Update: Epic Games revealed the full March 19 release date – on fan Waldo Kinney's body in tattoo form – during a panel at Comic-Con today.
Phantasy Star Online 2 coming to NA and EU early next year [update: it's official!]
Looking forward to getting your grubby mitts on some hot Phantasy Star Online 2 action? Those in the west may have to be patient, but there's now a finish line in sight: Sega announced that PSO2 will hit North America and Europe in early 2013. According to the PR, producer Satoshi Sakai says that the wait will be worth it: "The number one thing we want to provide players in Phantasy Star Online 2 is an adventure that changes every time they log in. Just as great table-top RPG experiences revolve around imaginative and unexpected encounters, we want players to consistently be surprised as they explore dungeons and undertake quests." Phantasy Star Online 2 launched in Japan this past week. [Thanks to Tom for the tip!]
RIM: QWERTY BlackBerry 10 phone launches in 'close proximity' to its all-touch cousin
RIM hasn't had much good news to offer along with its glum fiscal first quarter, but it has given a reason to mark early 2013 on the calendar if you're a BlackBerry fan. CEO Thorsten Heins revealed during the results call that the first QWERTY BlackBerry 10 phone will arrive in "close proximity" to its touchscreen-only counterpart. What that entails is still very much under wraps, although there were clues. Heins stressed that the early batch would focus on the "premium" space, while BlackBerry 7 would hold down the entry and mid-range markets until their BlackBerry 10 replacements were ready. The tidbits won't provide much comfort to someone who has to decide on a phone by the holidays, but they hint that the truly patient could be rewarded for their calm under pressure.
RIM announces Q1 earnings: $518 million net loss, 5,000 job cuts, BB10 not due until Q1 2013
The last quarter has been about as rough as they come for RIM, and it's now detailed just how things stacked up in terms of hard numbers. For the first quarter of its 2013 fiscal year, the company brought in $2.8 billion in revenue, down a full 33 percent from the prior quarter, while it reported a net loss of $518 million -- much worse than analysts were expecting. What's more, it's also announced that it's cutting an additional 5,000 jobs as part of its ongoing restructuring efforts, and that the first BlackBerry 10 smartphones now won't launch until sometime in the first quarter of the 2013 calendar year (that includes a QWERTY model launched in "close proximity" to the touchscreen-only device). As for why, RIM only went as far as to say that the integration of some key BlackBerry 10 features and the "associated large volume of code" has "proven to be more time consuming than anticipated." For his part, though, CEO Thorsten Heins says he remains "confident that the first BlackBerry 10 smartphones will provide a ground-breaking next generation smartphone user experience," and that he's "encouraged by the traction that the BlackBerry 10 platform is gaining with application developers and content partners." He further notes that the response to BB10 from key carrier partners has "been very positive." In terms of its existing devices, RIM reports that BlackBerry smartphone shipments (not sales) for the quarter totaled 7.8 million, while there were about 260,000 PlayBooks shipped -- on the company's earnings call, Heins noted that the total BlackBerry subscriber base now stands at 78 million. Not surprisingly, the company is warning of more bad news to come. It says it expects the "next several quarters to continue to be very challenging," with everything from the "increasing competitive environment," lower handset volumes, impact from the BlackBerry 10 delay, and the company's plans to "continue to aggressively drive sales of BlackBerry 7 handheld devices" expected to cut into its bottom line. In another bit of news, the company also announced that it has appointed Steve Zipperstein, Verizon's former General Counsel, as its new Chief Legal Officer. You can find the full earnings report at the source link below.
Anarchy will Reign in early 2013
Good news: the restructured Sega has not canceled the western release of Anarchy Reigns. However, Sega has delayed the release of Platinum's brawler again. Once set for July 2012 (which was a delay), then "to be confirmed," Sega has now given the game a Q1 2013 window in a brief message on Twitter. This game was supposed to be released in fall 2011.If you have access to a PS3 and a Japanese PlayStation Network account, you can download a demo of the game right now, under its Japanese name, Max Anarchy. The Japanese version comes out July 5, right around the time of its former US/Europe release window.
Ni no Kuni goes from another world to ours on January 22
The latest trailer for Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, posted by IGN, ends on the news that it'll be released in North America on January 22, 2012. Namco told Eurogamer that the UK date for the Level-5/Studio Ghibli PS3 game is January 25.The trailer also provides additional exposure to the English voice acting, which we declare "not bad." Should you disagree, however, take comfort in the knowledge that the Japanese track will also be on the disc.
SimCity building into your personal life February 2013
A press release (available after the break) detailing Electronic Arts' full E3 line-up has revealed a launch window for Maxis' forthcoming reboot of SimCity: February, 2013. Previously, we were left to ponder over a woefully vague "2013" release window for the reboot.Knowing that SimCity's launch won't happen until next year is actually super helpful, as it gives us plenty of time to collaborate with city planners, come up with street names, figure out efficient public transportation solutions and then construct a golden throne from which to watch it all burn.
TiVo shows a Q1 net loss of $20.8 million, will launch TV Everywhere web portal soon
TiVo has released its financial results for Q1 2013, and right off the bat they show a wider than expected net loss of $20.8 million. This is despite a rise in revenue and subscribers (driven mostly by Virgin Media, which added 242,000), and the company expects another loss in the second quarter due to rising litigation costs in its ongoing cases against Motorola and Time Warner Cable. We've already heard about TiVo's new Stream placeshifting box, IP multiroom extender and six-tuner XG1 gateway, but the new product news is a plan to launch TV Everywhere streaming. The first cable operator joining in the new venture will be RCN, and TiVo says its portal will allow providers using its DVRs to deliver streaming video in or out of the home, with video on-demand and remote DVR scheduling on PCs, tablets and mobile devices. That's expected to launch later this year, but for all the details, numbers and quotes you can check the press releases after the break.
RIM warns of loss for Q1, hires JP Morgan and RBC Capital Markets to help with strategic review
RIM announced last quarter that it would no longer be providing its traditional financial guidance for upcoming quarters, but CEO Thorsten Heins has nonetheless seen fit to deliver a "business update" today that offers some indication of what's in store for the company. The headline is that it's unsurprisingly projecting an operating loss for the next quarter (Q1 of its 2013 fiscal year), although it's not saying exactly how much, noting only that the "on-going competitive environment is impacting our business in the form of lower volumes and highly competitive pricing dynamics in the marketplace." The company's also confirmed that it has hired JP Morgan and RBC Capital Markets to aid in its so-called strategic review, which it says includes "opportunities to leverage the BlackBerry platform through partnerships, licensing opportunities and strategic business model alternatives." On the slightly brighter side of things, RIM was able to boast that it now has a worldwide subscriber base of 78 million, and that it now counts 80,000 BlackBerry apps and 15,000 PlayBook apps -- both significant increases from a year ago. It also further notes that BlackBerry 10 remains on track for the "latter part of calendar 2012." You can find the company's complete statement after the break.
Dell profit drops 33 percent in Q1, both home and corporate sales take a hit
Dell hasn't been having the greatest of years, and the blows are still as heavy as ever in Round Rock's fiscal Q1. Its net profit dipped a steep 33 percent to $635 million, while its overall revenue was down four points to $14.4 billion. Unlike in Q4, the PC builder couldn't point to strong enterprise sales as its savior, either: while its enterprise services' revenues were up two percent, its Large Enterprise group dropped by three points. Outside of small business sales and China, Dell's segments took hits as a whole, with the consumer group down a flinch-worthy 12 percent. The Texas firm is keen to stress that it's morphing into an "end-to-end IT provider" that downplays home sales, but without too many signs of strength in pleasing the suits and ties, we wouldn't count on investors being happy after they read the full details below.
Aliens: Colonial Marines delayed to February 2013 on 360/PS3/PC, Wii U date to be revealed later
Aliens: Colonial Marines launches on February 12, 2013, Sega announced this morning. The Gearbox Software-developed game was previously given a "fall 2012" launch window, and was planned as a Wii U hardware launch title (the game is also planned for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC), though no hard date was ever given before. In fact, despite the February 12 date announcement, the game's Wii U version still doesn't have a date. "A release date for the announced Wii U version will be revealed at a later time," the press release reads.Upset? That's understandable, but Sega's hoping to deflect some of that rage with a new trailer, which we've dropped just above.
Tomb Raider delayed until Q1 2013
The younger, dirtier and unvarnished version of Lara Croft still needs some polish, according to Crystal Dynamics. The developer is pushing back the release date of the next Tomb Raider, from Fall 2012 into the first quarter of 2013. (Yes, the same quarter that now hosts another one of 2012's former heavy hitters, Bioshock Infinite.)"Our priority now is to make sure we fully deliver the very highest quality game," Crystal Dynamics Head Darrell Gallagher wrote. In a missive posted on the game's official forums, Gallagher shared the studio's push to make Tomb Raider "the best game of our careers." The delay will boost quality up to "a level that you deserve," he said.The shift in release date has also given us an unexpected sense of optimism. If enough promising games get pushed into next year, we might actually start rooting for the world's continued existence beyond 2012.
NVIDIA reports Q1 earnings: rakes $60.4 million profit on $924.9 million in revenue
What's black and white and red all over? One thing it's probably not is NVIDIA's Q1 2013 earnings report. That's why we're here to dig through the muck and tell you that the company saw both profits and revenue fall from last quarter. Revenue was down three percent to $924.9 million but, more shockingly, net income dropped 47.9 percent to just $60 million. With a slew of new product launches over the last few months NVIDIA is optimistic about the future and actually managed to beat Wall Street's expectations. Though it offers little explanation for the drop off in its earnings press release, we'd expect things to get back to normal soon. For all the fine financial details, check out the PR after the break.
