EA Saw Losses in Fiscal Year ‘08

While EA games had a tremendous year in terms of sales — a total of 15 games went double platinum, fiscal year 2008 brought about losses of $454 million, compared with profits of $76 million in 2007. The period, which ended on March 31, 2008, saw the company’s total revenue rise 19% from last year up to $3.67 billion. In the fourth quarter alone, there was an 81% jump in revenue to $1.13 billion, according to GI.biz.

“A year ago, we committed to an aggressive change agenda at EA,” said CEO John Riccitiello. “Our employees stepped up to the challenge and we finished fiscal year 2008 with non-GAAP revenue up 30 per cent to USD 4 billion – a record for any third-party publisher. Our operating margins were flat to our prior year.

“On balance, we’re very pleased with our revenue growth, but not yet happy with our profit margins. In fiscal 2009, we expect to deliver another USD 1 billion in revenue growth and to double our operating profit on the strength of our slate of titles.”

I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but this is exactly what I meant when I’ve claimed that Riccitiello coming to the helm at EA was a good thing for gamers. He’s committed to getting EA back into the business of not just quantity, but quality of games.