Poor Sales Hurt THQ in First Quarter

The lack of a big title game in the first quarter resulted in THQ Inc. bringing in nearly $100 million less in revenues when compared to a year ago. The Agoura Hills-based video game publisher reported a net loss of $30.1 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, on revenues of $149.4 million for the quarter ending June 30. For the same period in 2009, the company had net income of $6.4 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, on revenues of $243.5 million. In the first quarter of 2009, revenues for THQ were driven by sales of UFC 2009 Undisputed and Red Faction: Guerrilla, both of which were top five selling games. Red Faction shipped over 1 million units alone. By comparison, the first quarter of 2010 had sales driven by a single title, UFC: Undisputed 2010. The company, meanwhile, in increasing its investment in online and digital game to make gains in those emerging markets, said THQ President and CEO Brian Farrell “We are excited about the opportunity for industry growth provided by rapidly expanding online markets and new gaming platforms such as Kinect, Move and Nintendo 3DS,” Farrell said. Shares in THQ closed down at $4.38. Mark R. Madler