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Ubisoft sales crest $1 billion during Q3
Ubisoft's performance figures for the three month period ending December 31, 2012 have been released, and while we don't have specific net/operating/sticky/whatever income figures on account of the company's Frenchness, we do have an overall indication of how it performed in Q3. Which is to say, pretty good.Sales for the period totaled €802 million ($1.07 billion), which is a 23 percent increase over the €652 million reported for the same quarter last year. Ubisoft's nine month year-to-date figures are also outperforming last year's: €1.08 billion ($1.45 billion) versus €900 million by this time last year, an increase of 21 percent.Ubisoft attributes a large amount of this income with Assassin's Creed 3's 12 million shipped units and Far Cry 3's critical success, in addition to a 143 percent year-over-year increase in digital sales, totaling €55.2 million ($74.3 million).
Sony posts a net loss of $115 million for Q3, stays on track for full-year operating profit
Still-in-turnaround-mode Sony has reported its earnings for the October to December period, and has recorded a net loss of about 10.8 billion yen ($115 million). It did however improve its revenue to $21 billion as the yen weakened, despite slower sales of items like HDTVs and Blu-ray players. Key for Sony is that it managed an operating profit for the quarter of 46.4 billion yen ($496 million) and remains on track to make its business profitable in the next financial year. Despite Sony's best efforts -- which include initiatives that you've heard about like its Triluminos HDTVs, PlayStation Mobile for tablets and phones, 4K and new software for the Vita -- it's cut sales targets in all of those divisions. Projected sales for TVs and cameras fell by 1 million units each, and portable game players by 3 million, as noted by Bloomberg. It's been a year since Kaz Hirai took the reins, and with his "One Sony" restructuring plan well underway and (what everyone suspects is) a PlayStation 4 event around the corner, 2013 is as important a year as the company has ever had. We'll check in for more info on the earnings call in just a bit, for now you can paw through all the numbers yourself in the slides and reports linked below.
Capcom sales, income up in 2012
Capcom continued its recent financial boon with a net income of 6.6 billion yen ($72 million), up 104.9 percent, for the first nine months of its fiscal year, which will end on March 31, 2013. Capcom attributed the success to launches of major games, the growing popularity of its social games in Japan, and its newly introduced Resident Evil 5 slot machine. Sales were up 44 percent during the same period from last year.While both Resident Evil 6 and DmC: Devil May Cry saw significant reductions to their end-of-fiscal-year projections, Capcom is pleased by the performances of Dragon's Dogma, which exceeded expectations to become a million-seller last year, and Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, which racked up over 600,000 sales during its first month in Japan.
Sharp manages an operating profit in Q3, but forecast remains cloudy
It's been a while since we had any good financial news for Sharp, so we'll start there. On an operating basis, Reuters and Nikkei report it managed to turn a profit for the October to December quarter of 2.6 billion yen ($28.5 million) -- more than analysts had predicted -- despite still recording a net loss of $398 million. That's not so bad when you consider the massive losses of a year ago, although questions raised last fall about the company's viability still remain. We'll see if a slew of new devices and partnership with Qualcomm are what the doctor ordered -- hopefully the #1 manufacturer of 60-inch and above HDTVs in 2012 can continue on long enough to put its 8K Super Hi-Vision TV in our living rooms.
EA 'pleased' with SWTOR F2P so far
In EA's third quarter earnings call, the company mentioned SWTOR and expressed cautious optimism toward the changes that free-to-play brought to the game. "As a reminder," CFO Blake Jorgensen reported, "on November 15th we launched our free-to-play option for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Very early indications have been positive and we are pleased with the initial results, but it is too early to know how successful this will be in the long term." Jorgensen said that SWTOR, among other titles, helped to contribute a tidy sum to the company: "Extra content and free-to-play contributed $185 million, up 50% led by FIFA and Madden Ultimate Team and Star Wars: The Old Republic." [Thanks to John for the tip!]
EA posts $45 million net loss in Q3, reduces revenue forecast
Electronic Arts announced a net loss of $45 million for its third fiscal quarter, ending December 31, 2012. The figure represents a significant year-on-year improvement from the company's previous Q3 net loss of $205 million. However, net revenue for the quarter endured year-on-year decline, down from $1.061 million to $921 million.In light of the economy's weakness, EA adjusted fiscal year net revenue forecasts to between $3.7 billion and $3.8 billion, down from the figures of $3.85 billion to $4 billion as per the company's Q2 financials. Speaking to Reuters, EA chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen noted the company's uncertainty over the market in the next few months."The economy hasn't gotten any stronger," Jorgensen said. "It's a little early for me to know how strong the market's going to be, so based on that we widened our range for revenue for the fourth quarter and brought our guidance down slightly just to make sure we're prudent."Yesterday's financial call revealed continuing successes for many of EA's headline franchises, such as FIFA, Battlefield, Dead Space and Crysis. However, following the poor reception to Warfighter, the company said it's taking Medal of Honor "out of rotation."
Toshiba's 2012 Q3 makes $322 million net profit, sees a future in nuclear
Toshiba's latest numbers may not reach the dizzying heights of last quarter, but at least it's not back to filling out its spreadsheets in red pen. The company is announcing profits of $322 million from net sales of $14.9 billion. A big chunk of that change came from Tosh's "social infrastructure" division, which produces power plants, medical systems and radiation detectors -- while its home entertainment and computing divisions sat and watched profits continue to decline. Toshiba has maintained the cut-back forecast it made in October, expecting annual net profits to be around $1.2 billion, more than enough for it to send you a cute bug-eyed robot for your next birthday.
Nintendo Q3 earnings show 3 million Wii Us sold, sales forecasts lowered again
Nintendo's Q3 earnings report is out, and it's sold just over 3 million units of its new Wii U console (at a loss) along with 11.69 million pieces of software. The other big news is that it's adjusted sales forecasts downward -- again, after it announced they were being cut back in October. However, since the flagship console is sold at a loss, while Nintendo is predicting 17 percent lower revenue, its prediction for net income has actually moved up by eight billion yen ($87 million). It's not all bad news however, as it's showing about $160 million in net income for the year, compared with last year's losses. The 3DS has jumped up to 29.84 million sold, while the original Wii is within shouting distance of the 100 million number. Need more numbers? Hit the source links to check out all the sales data firsthand.
Logitech to phase out production of console gaming accessories
The third quarter of fiscal 2013 wasn't especially awesome for Logitech, despite the fact that I personally spent 30 of my own dollars on a wireless keyboard within that time frame. Whereas the same period last year saw a net profit of $55 million, Logitech posted a net loss of $194.9 million in its most recent earnings report.As a result, some of Logitech's divisions will be scaled back, while others will be discontinued altogether. "We have initiated the process to divest our remote controls and digital video security categories, and we plan to discontinue other non-strategic products, such as speaker docks and console gaming peripherals," said Logitech president/CEO Bracken P. Darrell.While Logitech's console peripheral business will disappear, the company's PC gaming offerings will remain unchanged. We've also been able to confirm that Logitech console accessories that have already been purchased will continue to exist, and will not crumble into piles of dust. These cost reduction measures are expected to take place "by the end of Calendar Year 2013."
Logitech Q3 earnings reveal plans to sell off Harmony remote, video security divisions
The fiscal 2013 Q3 numbers from Logitech are in, and according to new CEO Bracken P Darrell, the "disappointing" results will require immediate action to turn around -- action that includes selling off its remote control (read: Harmony) and digital video security divisions. Logitech notched an operating loss of $180 million, on sales of $615 million. At this time last year, we were still looking forward to a refresh of the line which resulted in the Harmony Touch, but that does not appear to have turned things around. Harmony remote sales fell off by 55 percent based on units, although a focus on higher end devices like the new Touch meant revenue declined only 24 percent. According to a slide in the presentation, after a strategic review, Logitech is focusing on tablet accessories, wireless speakers as well as keeping its lead in PC-related products. Other "non-strategic" products are also on the chopping block, and we'd have to think that includes video conferencing after yesterday's announcement. Current owners worried about potential support should be taken care of however, as a post by Darrell on the support forums indicates company will continue to provide support during the sale process and all current warranties are still in effect. There's no word about a possible buyer, but we'll be tuning into the earnings call tomorrow morning to see what additional information is revealed.
RIM's Q3 2013 earnings: $2.7 billion revenue, $114 million adjusted net loss, CIO to retire
RIM has just announced its earnings for Q3 2013 (the three months ending December 1, 2012 in non-RIM terms), including a five percent drop in revenue to $2.7 billion and an adjusted net loss of $114 million. GAAP net income from "continuing operations" was $14 million, though, or $9 million when taking into account the loss from discontinued operations, and it's also reporting a cash increase of about $600 million to $2.9 billion. In terms of devices, RIM says it shipped 6.9 million smartphones and 255,000 PlayBooks during the quarter, although it's again only talking in terms of devices "shipped," not actual sales to consumers. Along with the earnings, the company has also announced that its CIO, Robin Bienfait, has decided to retire, although RIM says she will stay on in an "advisory capacity to enable a smooth launch and seamless transition." As for BlackBerry 10, CEO Thorsten Heins unsurprisingly reiterated that the company is all set for the January 30th launch date, and noted that more than 150 now completing technical acceptance programs for the first BlackBerry 10 products. The company also says it will be "significantly increasing its marketing spending this quarter" to support the launch of BB10, which it warns will contribute to a loss for the fourth quarter, as will the likely slowdown of BlackBerry 7 product sales as consumers hold off for BB10. Update: During the company's earnings call, Heins confirmed that RIM's global subscriber base now stands at 79 million worldwide, which is a slight decline from the previous quarter but still an increase year-over-year. Not surprisingly, he says the biggest losses came from North America. RIM also confirmed on the call that its BlackBerry sell-through for the quarter was 8.4 million, or actually higher than the number of new devices shipped.
IDC: Samsung and Apple rule connected device share, those who snooze in mobile lose
Most market share studies are broken down by individual categories that don't tell the whole story of their successes and failures. IDC has stepped forward with a more holistic look that covers PCs, phones and tablets all at once -- and paints a very different picture. Samsung and Apple lead the pack in the third quarter of this year with an estimated 21.8 and 15.1 percent share each, based mostly on their mobile dominance. Lenovo's equal balance between its rapidly growing PC and phone businesses put it at 7 percent. It's those who haven't done well outside of PCs that have struggled: IDC is quick to point out that HP's exit from mobile left it at 4.6 percent and sinking fast, while it's commonly known that Sony has yet to enjoy a truly blockbuster hit with its Android-based smartphones or tablets. The situation is changing quickly, but the data shows that companies can't lean solely on traditional computers to thrive in the broader technology landscape.
Best Buy posts $13 million loss in fiscal Q3 on lowered $10.75 billion in revenue
Best Buy had warned that its fiscal third quarter wouldn't be great, and the company clearly isn't putting on any rose-tinted glasses. Its revenue declined year over year from $11.15 billion to $10.75 billion, and it swung from $173 million in profit on continuing operations last season to $13 million in losses this time around. While the company hasn't drilled into the specifics of what led to the downturn, it's pointing to trends of the "last three years" as the culprits -- we'd say that's shorthand for shifts towards online sales and away from traditional electronics like TVs. Whatever the specifics, the company doesn't expect an immediate turnaround and has lowered its guidance for free cash flow in the next fiscal year from a minimum $1.25 billion to $850 million. If there's a ray of sunshine, it's that the big-box store chain already knows the belt tightening needs to continue: it recently kicked off a Renew Blue strategy that it hopes will improve our shopping experience and get its own fiscal house in order.
NVIDIA's revenue hits a record $1.20 billion for Q3 powered by Tegra 3 tablets, Kepler GPUs
Just as it predicted, NVIDIA's earnings show revenue rose again in Q3, to a new record high of $1.20 billion, 15.3 percent higher than in Q2 up 12.9 percent from the same period last year. Its profits also grew accordingly, to $209.1 million, which should be no surprise thanks to its Tegra 3 chip's place at the heart of tablets including Google's Nexus 7 and Microsoft's Surface for Windows RT, with more arriving daily. The Consumer Products division that includes the Tegra family and other hardware had a 27.6 percent rise in revenue for the quarter. Despite predictions of a slumping PC market, its consumer GPU unit had revenue up 10 percent from last quarter as Kepler based products reached into lower price points and notebook revenue rose. Riding high, the company has decided to issue dividends to shareholders as well as extend its current stock repurchasing program. Hit the source links for the full breakdown, but so far NVIDIA's bets on the future of its chips in PCs and post-PC devices seem to be paying off.
T-Mobile USA Q3 2012 earnings: Revenue drops 6 percent to $4.9 billion, profit down 15 percent
T-Mobile USA just announced its Q3 2012 financials, and its balance sheet is sagging over last year: the company collected $4.9 billion, 6.4 percent less than Q3 2011, and earned $1.2 billion, a decline of 15.2 percent. The mobile operator said while it earned more from equipment sales, it wasn't enough to offset an 8.7 percent drop in service revenue caused by a loss of 492,000 lucrative postpaid clients. Despite the gloomy tidings, the telecom said it added 160,000 new users (net) over last quarter thanks in part to the iPhone 5 launch, including 365k branded prepaid customers -- and improved "churn" (clients switching carriers) by 30 basis points to 2.3 percent. The company also feels its MetroPCS merger will also start to pay off soon, figuring it'll soon have "LTE deployment in 90 percent of the top 25 US markets." Whether the cheery talk will assuage investors remains to be seen -- check the PR after the break to see for yourself. [Image credit: Wikimedia Commons]
Activision reports $3.4 billion in cash and investments, no debt
Activision Blizzard reports $841 million in net revenue for the third quarter of 2012, which is $100 million higher than its outlook of $740 million, and surpasses 2011's Q3 net revenue of $754. For the third year straight, Activision generated more than $1 billion of operating cash flow in the trailing 12-month period ending this quarter, on September 30.Activision is in the black, with $3.4 billion available in cash and investments, and no debt to speak of, Activision Chief Financial Officer Dennis Durkin reports during a financial call."On September 30, we had no debt and $3.4 billion in cash and investments," Durkin says.Activision cites World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria, Diablo 3 and Skylanders Spyro's Adventure as its main revenue drivers: Mists of Pandaria sold through 2.7 million copies in its first week, Diablo 3 has sold 10 million copies and Skylanders was the No. 1 action-figure line in the US for the first nine months of 2012, and topped game-sales charts.With all that considered, plus the imminent launch of Black Ops 2, Activision raises its calendar-year outlook from $4.3 billion to $4.6 billion.
US Cellular takes hit on LTE devices, profits halved to $35.5 million in Q3 2012
US Cellular's latest figures show that while the network saw its revenues remain constant, net profits fell by nearly half compared to the same period last year. It coined $35.5 million in net profit this quarter, down from the $62.1 million it made in Q3 2011 despite bringing in $1.04 billion in turnover both times. The cause of this reduced profitability is said to be down to higher subsidies on LTE devices, which represented a full 50 percent of the company's smartphone sales in the quarter. While the carrier has reversed the trend of losing customers, it only managed to add a rather measly 9,000 new customers in the three-month period. That could be part of the motivation behind US Cellular selling off a big chunk of its Midwestern operations to the now cash-rich Sprint -- so it can concentrate on areas where business is stronger.
MetroPCS breaks 1 million LTE customers, makes $193 million profit despite losing 312,000 users in Q3
MetroPCS might be the smaller of the two parties in the proposed merger with T-Mobile, but it certainly knows how to coin a profit in difficult times. The carrier recorded a massive $193 million net profit this quarter, $44 million more than it made in Q2, despite losing 312,000 subscribers in the three month period. The reason behind the rosy numbers was a combination of cash-saving exercises and canny investments in securities, pushing total revenue to $1.3 billion. The network now has just under nine million customers, with more than a million of those subscribing to one of the company's LTE packages. It's also managed to reduce churn down to 3.7 percent, a reduction of 0.8 percent since Q3 2011. CEO Roger D. Linquist remarked that the next quarter will see the business "re-energize" subscriber growth at the expense of its bottom line -- probably wise, given that it's lost just over half a million customers in the last six months.
Clearwire sees wholesale revenues dip, LTE delays as it posts a $41.3 million net loss in Q3
Clearwire's figures show that the network it isn't cool to love will be making placating faces at its bank manager for yet another quarter. It pulled in revenues of $313.9 million for the three month period, but with business costs (and depreciation) clocking in at $646.7 million, the company posted an operating loss of $332 million and a net loss of $41.3 million. If that wasn't bad enough, it's also hacked back a target to add TD-LTE to 5,000 sites before mid-2013 to just 2,000. A similar problem has occurred over at newly-minted majority owner Sprint, which has found itself a quarter behind its own LTE timetable thanks to parts shortages -- so let's hope the folks over at Softbank can help both companies improve their estimating skills.
Samsung makes $7.4 billion in Q3 profits, surpasses expectations
Samsung set the bar a little lower than the final mark when it told investors its expectations earlier this month, posting $7.4 billion in operating profits for Q3 and $5.97 billion in net income. This handily bests the $7.28 billion profit it told investors to expect, nearly doubling what it made over the same period last year. Why the jump? You can blame the Galaxy S III, which increased shipments "significantly due to global expansion," the company says. Indeed, smartphone sales are credited to Sammy's quarter over quarter leap in revenue. Consumer electronics sales also boosted profits a fair deal, achieving "industry leading profitability" in the TV market, according to Samsung, who cited growth both in the consumer space, and in the sales of OLED panels for televisions, tablets and high-end smartphones. The company's semiconductor sales, on the other hand, dropped by eight-percent in the face of weak PC demands. Samsung expects demand for PC DRAM and other high value-added chip products to remain weak, but optimistically notes that the sector is still profitable, and may pick up as new devices come to market. Got the basics? Great -- dive into the details and charts at the source link below, or read on for Sammy's official Q3 press release.
