Ubisoft released their latest financial forecast, which confirms unannounced IP, Watch Dogs & South Park sequels.
“In 2016-17 the Company expects to achieve sales of around €1,700 million, non-IFRS operating income of approximately €230 million and strong free cash flow generation.
Ubisoft will launch a very high-quality line-up, including For Honor®, South Park: The Fractured but Whole(TM), Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands, the next installment of Watchdogs®, and a new high-potential AAA brand with strong digital live services.
Growth also will be driven by further increases in revenues for the digital segment and the back catalog,” reads the report.
“Looking beyond our sales figures for the quarter, which have led us to update our full-year targets, our strategy of focusing on player engagement is paying off, said company co-founder and CEO Yves Guillemot.
“For example, Rainbow Six Siege achieved record engagement levels during the period thanks to the success of its exceptional multiplayer mode. These advances are a decisive step in our business development and demonstrate the strong execution of our strategy, which will ultimately translate into regular revenue streams and enhanced profitability.
The upcoming releases of Far Cry Primal and The Division should confirm these trends. The Division – whose recent closed beta exceeded all of our expectations – is set to be one of the largest launches of a new brand in the history of the video game industry.”
Third-quarter sales
Sales for the third quarter of 2015-16 came to €561.8 million, compared with €809.7 million in third-quarter 2014-15 and a target of approximately €600 million. For the first nine months of fiscal 2015-16, sales totaled €769.1 million versus €1,293.9 million for the corresponding prior-year period.
The third-quarter 2015-16 was notably marked by:
- A slower launch than expected for Assassin’s Creed® Syndicate, in an exceptionally fierce competitive environment. The game’s quality was lauded by the franchise’s fans, however, and the Group was particularly pleased with the marked rise in players’ engagement compared with the prior title.
- Record player engagement levels for Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege, with first-person shooter fans especially appreciating the quality of the multiplayer mode.
- The increasing weighting of digital within Ubisoft’s overall sales, with this segment’s revenues amounting to €207.7 million for the first nine months of 2015-16 and representing 27.0% of the total, versus 21.2% for the same period of 2014-15.
- A 42.6% jump in back-catalog sales to €280.8 million for the first nine months of 2015-16.
Watch Dogs 2, South Park: The Fractured but Whole, For Honor, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands & new IP confirmed for launch in 2017.
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