Atari’s Grip Slipping on Dragon Ball Z
By Shawn on Thursday, November 1st, 2007 at 1:14 PM PST In Atari, Game Companies, Games, Games Industry
Atari has revealed in a recent SEC filing it is in danger of losing the Dragon Ball Z franchise license.
On October 18, FUNimation has served Atari with a notice to terminate the license based on alleged breaches of their licensing agreement.
“[Atari] disputes the validity of the termination notices and has continued to distribute the titles covered by the license agreements,” the company stated in the SEC filing, noting that the parties were in discussions attempting to resolve the issue.
Atari, who earned USD 85 million on the Dragon Ball Z franchise in fiscal 2005, noted that “…In the event that FUNimation is successful in terminating the license agreements it could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations and financial position.”
This would come as a huge blow to a company already foundering. Atari registered a USD 69.7 million loss for the last fiscal year.
Infogrames, Atari’s parent company, has recently fired five members of the Atari board of directors and appointed a chief restructuring officer to try to salvage the company.
