Disney Announces Reduced Results As Game Division Expands 2

The Walt Disney Company, the parent of rapidly expanding video game publisher and developer Buena Vista Games, announced profits of $379 million for the quarter, down significantly on a $516 million a year earlier, as revenues edged up slightly to $7.73 billion. Buena Vista Games falls under the company's Consumer Products division, which showed a small decrease from $534 million to $520 million compared to the previous year, and Disney commented in its results: "Lower segment operating income for the quarter was due to increased product development spending at Buena Vista Games", as well as the sale of retail outlet The Disney Store North America and a decline at The Disney Store Europe. The company's game division has been expanding significantly of late, most recently inking a deal to use Epic's Unreal Engine 3 in its Vancouver-based Propaganda Games studio for a new Turok title, as well as in other unannounced games. This holiday season sees some of the first major releases from Buena Vista's renewed publishing efforts, including games based on major Disney movie releases Chicken Little and The Chronicles Of Narnia. Overall, Disney's reduced profits, which were largely due to decreases in the Studio Entertainment area of the company, particularly a decline at the Disney-owned Miramax, and lower DVD unit sales, set Disney shares down somewhat - in late trading on the New York Stock Exchange, shares were down 83 cents to $25.16.