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Ubisoft Sales Down Over 35 Percent In Third Quarter FY2013
Ubisoft has suffered significantly decreased year-over-year sales for the quarter ending December 31, 2013. The numbers are in line with a revised forecast issued following the delay of Watch Dogs out of the current fiscal year.
Third quarter sales are down 35.2 percent (32.7 when equalizing for exchange rates) to €520 ($709 million) million in 2013 from €802 million ($1.09 billion) in the same quarter of the 2012 fiscal year. Ubisoft landed within the revised projects of €500 ($628 million) million to €540 million ($736 million).
Of note, digital sales are down by 4 percent for the quarter, but up overall by 12 percent so far for the year. Ubisoft attributes this to remarkable performance of Far Cry 3 last year.
Back catalog is also down. This quarter shows a 21 percent decrease. Again, the full year is up, this time by 6 percent. Assassin’s Creed 3 and Far Cry 3 are the primary drivers of Ubisoft’s previous releases.
Looking ahead, Ubisoft reconfirmed Watch Dogs and The Crew for release in the next fiscal year (April 1, 2014 through March 31, 2015). Watch Dogs will arrive between April 1, 2014 and June 30, 2014. Just Dance and two additional major titles are also planned. No specific mention of The Division is included in the press release.
Ubisoft projects €1 billion ($1.36 billion) in sales for the year ending March 31, 2014. The publisher also expects an overall operating loss of €65 million ($88.6 million). Sales are projected to be up year over year in the fourth quarter.
[Source: Ubisoft]
Our Take
Hopefully the upcoming financial call will put to bed any remaining concerns about Watch Dogs release and the platforms on which it will appear. Unsurprisingly, The Division is not mentioned specifically for the upcoming fiscal year and is likely delayed.
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