Profits on the rise for Vivendi
French media group Vivendi Universal has announced its Q1 financial statement, with profits up across the board and a particularly positive rise in revenues for its games division, bolstered once again by World of Warcraft.
French media group Vivendi Universal has announced its Q1 financial statement, with profits up across the board and a particularly positive rise in revenues for its games division, bolstered once again by World of Warcraft.
Overall revenues for the group, which includes music, television, telecommunications and videogames divisions, were posted at EURO 4.77 billion, an increase of 5.7 per cent on the same quarter in 2005.
The company's games division, which has shown a marked rise in profits each consecutive quarter since the launch of Blizzard's globally successful MMO title, World of Warcraft, recorded revenues of EURO 134 million, up 18.6 per cent on last year's figures.
The company also noted strong sales of the recent animated movie tie-in, Ice Age 2: The Meltdown, in addition to continued popularity of hip-hop star 50 Cent's game, 50 Cent: Bulletproof and the latest multi-format game in the long-standing Crash Bandicoot franchise, Crash Tag Team Racing.
The company has also confirmed the change to a slightly abridged name, Vivendi, which was approved by the shareholders during the annual meeting. According to a company press release, "Vivendiâs new logo and visual identity reflect the companyâs strength and ambition. A strength founded on its ability to be creative, innovative and dynamic and the ambition to offer customers the best products and services."