GameSpot Parent Acquires GameKult, Reports Results

Major video game site GameSpot's parent CNET Networks has reported its delayed yearly results, revealing much-reduced profits of $9.4 million (down from $29.9 million) on revenues of $387.7 million, and the acquisition of French game website GameKult. While the quarterly profit for CNet was lower than expected at $6.3 million, partly due to the settling of its stock options probe for a one-time $6.5 million charge, the company's yearly revenue was up 15% from previous year's figures of $338.0 million. This figure includes revenues from all the company's divisions, including CNet.com, ZDNet, and the newly relaunched MP3.com, as well as GameSpot - for which specific revenues were not split out. The most interesting news in the game space was the announcement of a move into the French market for GameSpot and its parent. According to a statement from the firm: "This month, CNET Networks acquired GameKult, a leading French provider of interactive content for video game enthusiasts." It's also noted: "Ranked among the top two gaming sites in France with over one million users per month (NNR Nielsen, December 2006), GameKult is widely recognized in the industry as an authoritative voice on news, trends and video game product reviews." GameSpot has recently launched further UK editorial, but this is the firm's first explicit move into continental Europe. Financial terms of the GameKult deal were not initially disclosed. Overall, sales were still over Wall Street's expectations, and for discal 2007, revenue is estimated at $425 million to $445 million, with profit between $23 million and $38 million, above analyst predictions. CNET shares were up 30c to $8.70 in afterhours trading on NASDAQ.