Konami Full Year Results Up, Despite Minor Game Dip

Officials from Japanese-headquartered firm Konami have announced details of the company’s full year financial results, for the period ended March 31st, 2007 which saw a dip in game sales, despite 8 million copies sold of the company's Winning Eleven/Pro Evolution Soccer franchise during the year. Over the twelve months, net revenues rose by 6.9 percent to ¥280.3 billion ($2.31bn). Operating income rose sharply to ¥28.1 billion ($231.4m), while overall profits/net income were down 29.5 percent to ¥16.2 billion ($133.4m). However, profits in the previous year was boosted by the sale of an affiliated company, with the figure actually increasing in real terms this year. The company’s digital entertainment division, which includes the core video games business, saw the lion’s share of both revenues and profit, with net sales down by 0.3 percent to ¥164.9 billion ($1.36bn) and operating income down by 7.2 percent to ¥31.4 billion ($258.6m). The Winning Eleven/Pro Evolution Soccer series was noted as the company’s most successful franchise, with global sales of eight million during the year representing the highest level ever. Sales of the Dance Dance Revolution/Dancing Stage series were also strong, with over one million unit sales, alongside other evergreen series such as Yu-Gi-Oh! and new titles such as manga license Death Note: Kira Game and Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops. The next most profitable business segment was Konami’s range of health & fitness clubs and equipment with net sales up 8.9 percent to ¥88.5 billion ($728.8m) with an operating income of ¥7.5 billion ($61.8m) The gaming & system segment, which includes arcade machines and gambling, saw sales rise by 57.6 percent to ¥16.7 billion ($137.5m) with an operating income of ¥2.2 billion ($18.1m). For the next financial year, Konami is forecasting slower than expected growth, with net revenues expected to rise by 5.3 percent to ¥295 billion ($2.43bn), operating income to rise by 17.3 percent to ¥33 billion ($271.8m) and net income to rise by 12.9 percent to ¥18.3 billion ($150.7m). The firm specifically mentioned Metal Gear Solid 4 as a key revenue driver for the year, which ends March 31st, 2008, but did not list a specific release date for the keenly awaited game.