2023-08-13 15:00:03
News business PlayStation is making progress, Take-Two is waiting for GTA VI and Microsoft gets another validation. Business news of the week
Published on 08/13/2023 at 17:00
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Financial results season and, now that Nintendo and Xbox have passed, make way for other publishers. This week, we will return to the balance sheet of PlayStation, the slow digestion of the acquisition of Zynga by Take-Two, as well as a new validation for the acquisition of Activision-Blizzard by Microsoft. As usual, you will find other information at the end of the article in the form of dispatches.
Summary
PlayStation’s turnover is going well, thank you for itTake-Two still suffers from the acquisition of ZyngaAcquisition of Activision-Blizzard: pending the CMA, a new validation Briefly in the business news of the week:
PlayStation revenue is good, thanks for him
For the past few weeks, the publishers have been publishing their financial results in turn. It’s this time PlayStation’s turn to go to the board to present the balance sheet of his first fiscal quarter closed on June 30. Overall, the various indicators are up, apart from operating profit, which is slightly down compared to last year in particular because of the takeoversand that the demand vis-à-vis the PS5 has been a little weaker than expected following a few months ofrushSo let’s start with revenue, an area where the PlayStation division is rarely caught off guard.
From April to June, PlayStation generated 4.9 billion euros, an increase of 28% compared to the same period last year. It’s a new established brand for gaming, with increases recorded across all sectors. The only unknown now is number of PlayStation Plus subscribers, which is no longer communicated. Anyway, Sony distributed 3.3 million PS5 over the quarterwhich does not correspond to the expected rate and the objective of selling 25 million consoles over the whole of the financial year.
We do not know the number of Xboxes sold over the same period, but we do know the number of Switches sold: 3.9 million. The comparison hurts a little, but keep in mind that the Switch OLED costs much less than a PS5, that Zelda carried the console, and that the other models, included in the total, are even cheaper. The PS5 has therefore officially been sold at more than 41.7 million units. Jumbled up, note that PlayStation Studios games represent 6.6 million games sold out of a total of 56.5and that the brand hopes to present an annual balance sheet with a turnover of 26.5 billion euros.
Take-Two still faces Zynga takeover
In January 2022, we learned that Take-Two Interactive acquired Zynga (FarmVille) for 12.7 billion of dollars. An acquisition that the company must digest and which still greatly affects the results. Take-Two therefore presented a turnover of 998 million eurosbut a loss of 186 million on the operating profit level and 187 million on the net profit side. Mobile represents 53% of turnovermerci Zynga !
These losses are beyond expectations, but Strauss Zelnick told shareholders there was nothing to fret regarding. In March 2024, Take-Two is expected to report annual revenue of around €5 billionwhich will be accompanied by a overall net loss of 500 million. It was precisely at this time that the CEO mentioned the 2024-2025 financial yearindicating that the forecast was a turnover of nearly 8 billion euros and that this balance sheet would constitute a “major economic turning point“. And there is only one license able to boost sales in this way, and that, of course, is Grand Theft Auto VI. In other words, the release seems for the moment planned before April 2025.
And as much to say that Rockstar can take its time, since Grand Theft Auto V has not yet decided to hand over. In March, we learned that the title had passed the bar of 180 million copies sold. In June, the total rose to 185 million. Simply colossal. We must also not forget Red Dead Redemption II, which now peaks at 55 million units, nor NBA 2K23, which quietly passes the bar of 13 million copies. Take-Two takes the opportunity to remind that 2.6 million gamers spend money in the title. This is important, because spending on DLCs and microtransactions represent the vast majority of turnover (83%).
Takeover of Activision-Blizzard: pending the CMA, a new validation
The Activision-Blizzard King takeover is now possible in most markets, but regulators continue to work in various countries. After no less than eight postponements of the decision, New Zealand regulators have officially cleared the deal. The market remains minor, but it is the 42nd validation pronounced, even if the FTC has to be counted in itwhich can continue its legal course despite the rejection of the request for a preliminary injunction.
Until the validation by the Commerce Commission, agents operating in New Zealand believed that the takeover would not harm the nascent cloud gaming market, and that the merged entity would not harm competition in the games and software market. brackets. Doubts visibly liftedas John Small, chairman of the commission, said:
While Activision games, particularly Call of Duty, are popular with New Zealand gamers, our surveys did not reveal that they are likely to be “must have” to compete with Microsoft in New Zealand.
From now on, the only concrete obstacle is the CMA, which must give its opinion on the new agreement before the end of August. A provisional opinion must be given this week but at the time of writing, this was not yet the case. As a reminder, the initial agreement between ABK and Microsoft expired in mid-July, but the two companies have decided to extend the deadlinethe time to resolve the situation with the CMA.
Briefly in the business news of the week:
Dmitri Glukhovski, the author of the novels Metro 2033, 2034 and 2035 adapted into video games by 4A Games, was sentenced to 8 years in prison in Russia in absentia for spreading false information. He accuses Vladimir Putin of initiating hostilities once morest Ukraine, and has opposed the regime for many years. Having left Russia, he will only serve his sentence if he sets foot in Russia or is extradited.The saga Metal Gear now represents 60 million units sold worldwide. Electronic Arts has announced that the servers of Dead Space 2 (December 8), Crysis 3 (September 7) and Dante’s Inferno (December 8) will be closing soon. 30th week 100% Switch in terms of sales in value and in physical terms on the SELL side. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is in first place, followed by Pikmin 4, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe and Animal Crossing: New Horizons.Valve has set up a page of refurbished Steam Deck sales. The 64 GB model goes from 419 to 339€, the 256 GB from 549 to 439€ and the 512 GB from 679 to 539€Telltale has acquired the Flavourworks studio, which developed the Erica game.
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