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EA Exceeds Financial Expectations Thanks To Star Wars Battlefront And The Old Republic
EA has reported its financials for the third quarter of its current fiscal year. The company reports that its Star Wars license is paying off once more, with strong performance from Battlefront and The Old Republic.
Despite beating expectations, EA profits slipped from $142 million to a loss of $45 million in the holiday quarter. The trailing twelve months profit also dipped from $847 million for calendar 2014 to $652 million for calendar 2015.
Despite slipping, EA still beat out its anticipated financial performance. The company also met early its year-end projections for Star Wars Battlefront shipments.
EA says it has shipped more than 13 million units to retail. There is no indication of what portion of that has been sold through to customers.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens was also responsive for a resurgence in popularity of The Old Republic. The MMO saw more subscribers during the quarter than it has in three years, a period that also coincides with the game’s shift to free-to-play.
EA live services, including Ultimate Team offerings jumped again. This time, the publisher is reporting a 13 percent revenue gain year-over-year.
[Source: EA]
Our Take
Despite slipping in profits and a slight decrease in revenue, EA is on track to meet its year-end projections. Provided that people purchase those retail copies of Battlefront sitting in stores, the publisher has a number of Star Wars successes that prove out the value of the license.
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