Vivendi hopes that this success will endure

"world of warcraft", the massively multiplayer game developed by Blizzard Entertainment Californian studio and launched end of 2004 by Vivendi Games, subsidiary video of the French group Vivendi Games, crossed the Cape of the 8 million subscribers in the world, including 3.5 million in China, where it is operated with a local partner, at the same time when the Group last week released the first expansion of the game. By purchasing a new "box" in addition to the dozen or so disbursed EUR each month , customers can discover new universe and, main interest for Vivendi, remain faithful to the game.

The success of "world of warcraft" is beyond the most optimistic forecasts of the French group for a game in which development costs amounted to several dozen million, but that represents today a real manna: Vivendi Games leaders chaired by René Penisson and directed by Bruce Hack "wow", as his many fans, represents today more than half the income of the subsidiaryincome which will exceed EUR 750 million in 2006, an increase of 17 over 2005. "We anticipate this same trend growth for 2007 and 2008," said Bruce Hack. With revenues from their majority of subscriptions, Vivendi is dependent on a single game, but also has visibility into its sales that do not have other publishers.

And, with this game, Vivendi Games, long deficit, has returned to profit in 2005 and in 2006 the EUR 90 million of operating income to exceed.

Vivendi hopes that this success will endure. ""world of warcraft"will have superior life a decade ago, perhaps even more", says Bruce Hack. Vivendi Games provides out each year a new extension.

Acquisitions

For the moment, even if the group admits have projects in this sense, it is not question for society out another massively multiplayer game by riding on the success of "world of warcraft" and Blizzard Entertainment reputation of being the best studio for PC games online in the world. "world of warcraft" is sufficient to the happiness of Vivendi Games, and the company does not want to, it seems, take the risk of seeing its main game cannibalized by another.

The success of "world of warcraft" also allows the long moribund video Vivendi Games division, to have new ambitions. Earnings by its flagship game allow this activity to have sufficient resources to invest, in a period where the size of investments made necessary by new technologies is a key element. Because if the group is the top of the charts in the PC game online, it is only a second category, even embryonic editor in other areas of the game (consoles, mobile...).

Decided to put Overdrive, Vivendi Games launched in 2006 two new divisions: Sierra Online, name another studio, Sierra games online on consoles and PC, and Vivendi Games Mobile games on mobile phones. The group is willing to increase acquisitions in this area the process was launched two years to seize new intellectual properties and new studios. There is no question of a major operation of external growth via the purchase of another editor which would today be "no interest", according to René Penisson but rather operations targeted in a field where you capitalize on technologies and trademarks.