Vivendi Losses Widen

Officials from Vivendi Universal have released details of the company’s third quarter performance, with the Games division suffering a €58 million ($70.2m) operating loss. The loss compares to a negative result of just €2 million ($2.4m) last year and contributes to a year-to-date loss of €110 million ($133.2m), as compared to a €37 million ($44.8m) profit for the first nine months of 2002. Revenues for the division were down to just €77 million ($93.2m), down 54% from the same period in 2002. The company had little explanation for the decline and indicated that fourth quarter results were likely to be equally poor, but that restructuring next year should see a turn around for the division. Results for Vivendi Universal in general were actually significantly better than analysts had predicted, with a net profit of €131 million ($158.6m), up 43% from last year.