Submitted by Fox First at Ten on November 7th
By The Associated Press
Companies in the video games industry have begun releasing their earnings reports for the latest quarter. Here's a look at selected companies that make or sell video games or machines.
- Oct. 18: Microsoft Corp. says Xbox 360 platform revenue fell 24 percent, or $418 million, mostly because of fewer consoles sold and lower revenue from video games software. The year-ago quarter saw the release of "Gears of War 3," with no comparable major releases in the just-ended quarter. That was offset partly by higher revenue from its Xbox Live subscription service.
- Oct. 24: Nintendo Co. says it narrowed its losses in the six months through September, but the Japanese game maker lowered its sales and profit forecasts for the full year ahead of the launch of its new Wii U home console.
- Oct. 26: GameStop Corp. says it plans to open about 80 holiday stores aimed at younger kids. The stores will feature video games, accessories and licensed products for younger kids. This includes Activision's "Skylanders," as well as "Angry Birds" toys and mugs and the Lego series of video games.
- Oct. 30: Electronic Arts Inc.'s outlook falls short of most Wall Street expectations. The video game publisher posts a loss of $1.21 per share, compared with a loss of $1.03 per share a year earlier.
- Oct. 31: Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. exceeds Wall Street expectations with gamers snapping up popular sequels like "Borderlands 2" and "Grand Theft Auto IV." The earnings beat comes one day after the Rockstar Games unit of Take-Two announced that the next installment of "Grand Theft Auto," one of the best-selling games of all time, would hit shelves in the spring.
- Nov. 1: Sony Corp.'s game unit suffers as the drop in hardware and software sales of the PlayStation 3 home console was not offset by the sales of the new PS Vita hand-held machine.
- Wednesday: Video game maker Activision Blizzard Inc. issues quarterly results that topped analysts' forecasts. Management predicts more good times in the crucial holiday shopping season thanks to the latest edition in its popular "Call of Duty" franchise. Activision credits "Diablo III," a role-playing game designed for personal computers, and its latest version of "World of Warcraft" for moving its latest quarter to a higher level.
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