Gameloft sales up 46 per cent during 2006

Mobile gaming company Gameloft has published its financial results for 2006, revealing an increase in sales of 46 per cent from EUR 46,800 to EUR 68,400.

Dowload revenues, which make up the company's core business, grew by 78 per cent, and operating margin rose sharply during the second half of the year to 11.4 per cent.

Gameloft attributed the increase to "employee growth and the leverage effect on sales".

Operating income for 2006 stood at EUR 2.5 million, compared to EUR 2.3 million last year.

Gameloft also made a EUR 20.4 million net capital game from the sale of Jeuxvideo.com, which pushed operating profit up from EUR 1.2 million in 2005 to EUR 19.2 million.

Financial income totalled EUR -1.6 million which, according to Gameloft, was "mainly comprised of exchange rate losses due to the decline in the American dollar".

Overall net profit was up to reach EUR 16.3 million. Shareholder equity doubled to stand at EUR 44.2 million, and cashflows from operating activities came close to breaking even during the second half of the year.

Gameloft claims to have "the industry's top development capacity, far ahead of all its competitors", with more than 2300 developers currently employed. The company plans is to launch more than 50 titles per year.

Gameloft has already published more than 120 games, including licensed titles such as Lost, Deal or No Deal and Desperate Housewives, plus original IPs Block Breaker Deluxe, Miami Nights and Real Soccer.

For 2007, Gameloft predicts sales of between EUR 90 million and EUR 10 million. Operating profitability is forecast to exceed 10 per cent.

Sales figures for the first quarter of this year will be published on April 30.