|
|
by
Daniel Huebner and Jennifer Olsen
Want
to submit news stories for the Gamasutra Newswire?
Send them to us.
|
|
 News
Week
of April 24-May 1, 2000
[Friday,
April 28, 2000]
Sony
Profits Slump
A strong yen and PS 2 launch costs are driving down Sony's profits. The
company is reporting the profits are off 32 percent from last year's mark,
though earnings still reached nearly $1.1 billion. Group operating profits
from Playstation consoles and games, Sony's biggest earner last year,
fell 43.3 percent in the wake of massive costs associated with the Playstation
2 launch and weak sales of its predecessor. The yen continued to be the
major obstacle to increased profits, however. The company reported that
free of an appreciating yen group operating profits would shown a 39 percent
increase over last year.
Nintendo
Investigation
The European Union Commission is looking into possible Nintendo price
fixing. The EU's Competition Commission believes Nintendo and its European
distribution partners, Linea GIG SpA, Itochu Corp, Concentra LDA, Bergsala
AB, Nortec SA, CD-Contact Data GmbH and John Menzies Plc., acted like
a cartel to divide up the European market and stifle competition. The
group's actions wiped out parallel trade between EU nations and resulted
in product price differences of as much as 100 percent from one country
to another. EU competition rules give Nintendo and its partners two months
to reply to the allegations, after which the Commission can impose fines
as high as 10 percent of the company's annual global turnover.
[Thursday,
April 27, 2000]
Ensemble
Adds Artists
Ensemble Studios is adding two new faces to its already formidable art
team. Joining the company are award winning science fiction artist David
Cherry and industry veteran Brad Pollard. Pollard counts over 35 titles
to his credit, working with companies like Broderbund and Electronic Arts.
Cherry has won multiple awards for his fantasy and science fiction work,
which includes the covers of over 30 paper back book and a trading card
game. Cherry will produce box art as well as conceptual art for future
titles. "We want to really grab people's imagination, and David has proven
he can do that many times over. It's an honor to have him working with
us when creating these new worlds," said CEO Tony Goodman.
Sega.com
Hong Kong
Sega is making a move to expand its product reach in Asia beyond Japan.
The company is forming a Hong Kong office of Sega.com to introduce the
Dreamcast, Sega Net, and Heat.net to players in Asian markets. Sega.com
Asia, as the office will be known, will serve as Sega.com's exclusive
agent in the Asia Pacific region and will go beyond the scope of Sega.com's
online gaming network by taking responsibility for the marketing and distribution
of Dreamcast hardware and software. Sega.com Asia will also spearhead
the localization of games for its newly served markets. "Expanding our
presence in Asia is a great opportunity to introduce the advantages of
Sega.com and Sega Dreamcast to one of the world's largest growth markets,"
said Sega.com CEO Brad Huang.
[Wednesday,
April 26, 2000]
Midway's
Q3
Midway's red ink is rising, as the company announces big losses for the
third quarter. Revenues for the quarter dropped from $80.3 million last
year to $54.9 million this year, transforming last year's $1.1 million
in income into a net loss of $11.5 million for this year's third quarter.
Midway's coin-op revenues dropped 31 percent from last year's result,
while home game revenues slipped 33 percent. Midway is laying the fault
on the perceived industry slowdown in console sales that has taken the
blame from many game publishers for disappointing results over the last
two quarters.
Entertaining Cell
Sony is choosing its partners for a new generation of entertainment cell
phones. The new phones will be based on Texas Instruments Open Multimedia
Application Platform and Symbian's EPOC operating system. The Symbian
development platform, which incorporates key technologies like Java, Bluetooth
and WAP, is the product of a joint venture by industry leaders Nokia,
Ericsson, Motorola, Panasonic, Philips and Psion to create a standard
operating system for next-generation cell phones. Sony, the first non-shareholder
to license the technology, could be the driving force Symbian is looking
for to drive the adoption of its system in the face of a heated battle
with Microsoft for control of the mobile market. "Sony will extend the
choice and diversity of wireless devices that are available for mobile
users, and also encourage the development of content and services in the
wireless industry," said Symbian CEO Colly Myers. Sony plans phones with
video, music, and Internet capabilities early next year.
GeForce
2 Deals
Nvidia's new GeForce 2 is just a day out of the gate yet is quickly claiming
a number of key OEM deals that will bring the chip home in under a month.
Gateway, Micron, and Compaq are set to include the GeForce 2 in their
offerings, while Creative Labs, ELSA, and Guillemot are ready to produce
boards based on the new technology. "Over the last year, we've enjoyed
wonderful partnerships and great success with our customers. With the
launch of our second generation GPU, we will continue this trend," said
Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang.
[Tuesday,
April 25, 2000]
Games.com
Delay
Though international sales and traditional toys helped Hasbro to post
earnings of $.08 per share for the first quarter, delays and costs related
to the company's online gaming ambitions added up to a charge of $.01
per share. Revenues from interactive software and games dropped to $22
million from a mark of $38 million in the same period last year, a drop
Hasbro blames on an industry wide slowdown. Adding to Hasbro's interactive
headache, the company is pushing back the launch of its major online gaming
initiative, Games.com, from summer to fall because of an inability to
recruit staff. "While we expect improved performance from interactive
games, we do not expect a return to profitability this year," said Hasbro
Chairman Alan Hassenfeld.
THQ
Q1
THQ is riding the success of WWF Smackdown! to a profitable first
quarter as most the industry screams of a slowdown. Revenues for the quarter
were $70.4 million, while earnings reached $4.7 million. Though the results
are below last year's first quarter revenues of $78.8 million and earnings
of $9.5 million, the numbers still beat analyst expectations. The company
credits strong sales of titles based licensed properties like Rug Rats
and North American and UK chart topper WWF Smackdown! THQ plans
to build on this success by expanding its WWF franchise online with WWF
With Authority and by developing new licenses including Scooby Doo
and Power Rangers.
[Monday,
April 24, 2000]
3DO
Earnings
Publisher 3DO is warning that its fourth quarter earnings, though still
strongly positive, will not meet analyst expectations. Revenues for the
fourth quarter should nearly double the results of last year's fourth,
increasing to $47 million from last year's $23 million. Income for the
quarter will hit $10 million to $11 million, equaling roughly $.25 per
share. Though the result is an improvement over last year's $.10 per share,
analysts had expected the company to post income in the range of $.38
per share. 3DO attributes the shortfall to delays in shipping, notably
for Army Men World War for the Playstation. For the year ended
March 31, 3DO saw revenues increase to better than $120 million, approximately
a 120 percent increase from the result of the previous year. 3DO will
release their full fiscal results in early May.
Sega
Promotions
Sega of America is promoting several key executives as it moves into a
critical stage of its Dreamcast strategy. Chief among the changes is the
promotion of Peter Moore to the position of president and COO. Moore had
previously served Sega as vice president of marketing. In his new role,
Moore is responsible for directing Sega's console and online gaming business
in North America. Sega is also promoting Shinobu Toyoda, one time president
of Sega's PC games division, to the position of executive vice president
of content strategy in charge of Sega's game lineup. Chris Gilbert is
moving to the role of executive vice president of sales, marketing, and
operations, while Neal Robinson has been promoted to vice president of
third party licensing.
Past
News
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
