14 DAY TRIAL // Infogrames is announcing "good" financial results throughout the entire duration of last year. The "good" part should be taken with a bit of context, though. Before that, the company was in dire financial straits, with some being positive that a bankruptcy filing was actually in the works. So, the "good" results actually show losses, with the only reason for joy being that the losses are shrinking.
A year ago, the Infogrames videogame publisher was registering losses close to 103 million Euros, while now losses are only half of that amount, meaning, at around 51 million Euros. Operating losses are down to almost half of what they once were. Sadly, revenues from games sales are also going down, from 305 million Euros to 290 million Euros.
Most of the sales of Infogrames were concentrated on the European and Asian markets but a merger with Atari, which is due in the next few months, is set to create a strong presence also on the North American market for the company.
David Gardner, the recently appointed Chief Executive Officer of Infogrames, stated: "Last year has been a difficult but crucial period for the Group. During that period, Infogrames has carried out an intensive restructuring of its capital base, leading to an improved financial situation and has initiated an important reorganization of its global distribution network and management structures."
The future should be even brighter for the company as two of its biggest franchises are getting new games. On one hand, Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit is being released, with expectations that it will prove to be a big success on both the American and Asia markets. On the other hand, the much previewed and much talked about revival of the Alone in the Dark franchise is also getting ready for a summer launch - and Infogrames is pinning its hopes for profits this year on the title.