Ubi Full Year Sales Increase; Assassin's Creed 2, Red Steel 2, Ghost Recon 4 Dated News

Despite fourth quarter sales of 2008-09 dipping to 206 million euros (£184.54 million) from 217 million euros (£194.39 million) for the same period last year, Ubisoft managed to post full year sales of 1.06 billion euros (£949.56 million), representing an increase of 14% year-on-year.

A strong showing of Wii titles during Q4 ensured sales were inline with previous predictions for the French publisher, with sales of Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X also passing the million milestone during the period.

Looking ahead to the current fiscal year, Ubisoft expect Q1 sales to stand at 95 million euros (£85.10 million), which represents a 44% decrease compared to the same period last fiscal year.  Despite the reduction, Ubisoft expects the second half of the year - buoyed by confirmed Christmas releases for Assassin's Creed 2, Splinter Cell: Conviction and Red Steel 2 - to perform better and will result in full-year sales of approximately 1.1 billion euros (£985.40 million).

Although sales are expected to decrease by 35% during the first six months of the current financial year, Ubisoft expects this to be offset by 23% growth during the crucial last six months of the year.

Confirmation that Ghost Recon 4 will also appear during the current fiscal year was also made, though this appears to be coming after Christmas and should arrive during the fourth quarter (Jan-Mar 2010).  Ubisoft will also be launching a new Wii sports title, currently being developed by the recently acquired Action Pants studio.

Yves Guillemot, Chief Executive Officer, stated: "In a highly competitive environment Ubisoft reported full-year sales growth of 18% at constant exchange rates in 2008-09 as well as the second best profitability among comparable companies in its industry. In addition to strengthening our existing franchises - particularly Far Cry and Rayman Raving Rabbids, whose sales were up by more than 50% on their previous performances - we successfully launched two new million-unit-selling brands with Shaun White and Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X, confirming our entry into the sports segment and bolstering our position in the air combat segment.

Lastly, we affirmed our expertise in titles for Nintendo consoles, with our casual games business posting a growth over 40%. In 2008-09, we also continued to invest heavily in Ubisoft's future potential, hiring some 1,300 talents for our studios with a view to driving the Company's expansion, further strengthening our franchises and preparing for the next generation of handheld as well as home consoles. The results of these efforts will be seen as early as this Christmas with one of the industry's most ambitious games line-ups which will include Assassin's Creed 2, James Cameron's Avatar, Splinter Cell Conviction, Rabbids Go Home and Red Steel 2."