Sega Sammy 'Soaring Higher' In Latest Annual Report

In its latest shareholder's report, officials from Sega Sammy Holdings have said that with both revenue and profits up in its second quarter, the company has seen its best results since Sega and Sammy finalized their managment integration in late 2004 and is poised for even further expansion. As reported in May, the company posted a net profit of ¥66.2 billion ($601.3m) for its second fiscal year, a 31 percent increase from ¥50.6 billion ($459.6m) posted a year earlier. Operating profit grew 13 percent to ¥119.1 billion ($1.08b), resulting from a 7 percent increase in overall sales to ¥553.2 billion ($5.02b). Sega Sammy CEO and group chairman Hajime Satomi noted in his report that by far the company's success rested on its "unrivaled" development in the pachislot and pachinko business, but further expansions and "dramatic growth" in its markets for arcade machines and their accompanying card sales - with localized versions of its Mushiking and Love and Berry having recently been released in America - have also contributed to the company's growth. Finally, Satomi, whose holding company consists of 82 subsidiaries and 17 affiliates, pointed to Sega's and Sammy NetWorks' own individual successes in the consumer market, in addition to "rigorous control of schedules and quality following the implementation of reorganization measures in development," as a leading factor in its profitibility increases. "We will become the world's number one comprehensive entertainment company," said Satomi in his shareholder address. "The Sega Sammy Group will use its business portfolio, the strongest in the industry, to create synergies and stake out a solid position in a new competitive environment."