- Record first quarter sales of €360 million
- Creation of a major new franchise – Watch Dogs®, with 8 million units
- Targets for full-year 2014-15 confirmed
- Syndicated loan extended
Paris, July 10, 2014 – Today, Ubisoft released its sales figures for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2014.
Sales
Sales for the first quarter of 2014-15 came to €360 million, up 374% (or 386% at constant exchange rates) compared with the €76 million recorded for first-quarter 2013-14.
The first-quarter sales figure was higher than the target of approximately €310 million announced when Ubisoft released its full-year 2013-14 results. This performance reflects:
- The success of Watch Dogs, which broke Ubisoft’s and industry’s sales record for, respectively, the launch of a new game and of a new brand, with over 8 million sell-in units.
- Strong growth reported in the digital segment, with sales up 149% to €84 million, driven by Watch Dogs, the success of Ubisoft’s Free-to-Play mobile games and the releases of Trials FusionTM, Child of LightTM and Valiant Hearts The Great WarTM.
At E3 2014, media and gamers recognized the high quality of the games presented by Ubisoft as demonstrated by a record number of awards won and a 27% share of views on Youtube[1]. Assassin’s Creed Unity® and Far Cry® 4 took first and second place respectively in the Gamespot Trax E3 chart, which also recognized Ubisoft as a top publisher.
Yves Guillemot, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, said, “The success of Watch Dogs and the quality of our games portfolio presented at this year’s E3 highlight our strategic positioning as well as our continuous drive for innovation, and affirm our long-term approach. Watch Dogs is now well-positioned as a major franchise and we will be able to replicate and build on its success in the coming years. Its sales performance testifies to Ubisoft’s expertise as a creator of blockbuster brands. That expertise enables us to stand out from our competitors at the beginning of each console cycle and therefore to reach a new dimension. Additionally, Ubisoft created a strong impression at the last E3 with titles such as Assassin’s Creed Unity, The Crew, The Division, Far Cry 4, Just Dance Now, and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege.”
“Although the financial year has only just started, our confidence for fiscal 2014-15 has been reinforced by our first-quarter performance and the keen anticipation for our upcoming games.” Outlook
Sales for the second quarter of 2014-15
Ubisoft expects second-quarter sales to amount to approximately €85 million, down by around 61% compared with the second quarter of 2013-14, which saw the releases of Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell® BlackList®, Rayman Legends® and Just Dance® 2014.
Full-year 2014-15
Ubisoft is standing by its previously-announced targets for full-year 2014-15, namely sales of at least €1,400 million and non-IFRS operating income of at least €150 million.
Extension of Ubisoft’s syndicated loan
Ubisoft’s syndicated loan has been increased from €215 million to €250 million and its term was extended from July 2017 to July 2019.
Significant events
Market share: In the first five months of calendar 2014, Ubisoft was the second-largest independent publisher in the United States with 12.4% market share (compared with the fourth-largest and 6.8% one year earlier). In the first six months of calendar 2014, Ubisoft was also the second-largest independent publisher in Europe with 15.7% market share (compared with the third-largest and 8.8% one year earlier).
Contact
Investor relations
Jean-Benoît Roquette
SVP Investor Relations
+ 33 1 48 18 52 39
Jean-benoit.roquette@ubisoft.com
Disclaimer
This statement may contain estimated financial data, information on future projects and transactions and future business results/performance. Such forward-looking data are provided for estimation purposes only. They are subject to market risks and uncertainties and may vary significantly compared with the actual results that will be published. The estimated financial data have been presented to the Board of Directors and have not been audited by the Statutory Auditors. (Additional information is specified in the most recent Ubisoft Registration Document filed on June 26, 2014 with the French Financial Markets Authority (l’Autorité des Marchés Financiers)).
About Ubisoft
Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of worldrenowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s video game series, Rayman, Far Cry and Watch Dogs. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2013-14 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,007 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.
© 2011-2014 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Assassin’s Creed, Black Flag, Watch Dogs, Far Cry, Just Dance,
Splinter Cell Blacklist, Rainbow Six, The Crew Logo, The Division, Just Dance, Child of Light, trials Fusion, Valiant Hearts The Great War, Rayman, the character of Rayman, Ubisoft, Ubi.com, and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries. Tetris ® & © 1985~2014 Tetris Holding. Tetris logos, Tetris theme song and Tetriminos are trademarks of Tetris Holding. The Tetris trade dress is owned by Tetris Holding. Licensed to The Tetris Company. Game Design by Alexey Pajitnov. Original Logo Design by Roger Dean. All Rights Reserved. © 2014 Additional game content by Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Ubisoft, and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries. Developed and published under license by The Tetris Company. © 2014 Carbon Games inc. All Rights Reserved. Published and distributed by Ubisoft Entertainment under license from Carbon Games Inc.. AirMech is a trademark of Carbon Games inc. and is used under license. Ubisoft and Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.
[1] share of views of videos posted by publishers on Youtube (data collected on June 12, 2014)