Konami reports solid first-half results

Japanese publisher Konami has announced its results for the first half of the financial year - revealing solid but largely unremarkable figures which were largely upheld by the success of Pro Evolution Soccer and the firm's casino machine business.

The company's sales for the six months to September 30th rose by 6.9 per cent to 119.6 billion Yen (795 million Euro) year on year, while operating profit was up by an impressive 35.6 per cent, from 7.46 billion Yen (50 million Euro) to 10.12 billion Yen (67 million Euro).

However, the firm did report a drop in net profit, with the tumble being attributed to a tough comparison against the first half last year - in which Konami saw a major boost to its bottom line from the disposal of a shareholding in Takara.

The firm's videogames division wasn't a strong performer in the first half, with Pro Evolution being the only really stand-out title - Jikkyou Power Pro Baseball was also named as a title which lived up to expectations, as was new US title Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA.

However, other business sectors are doing well for the company - including sales of gambling slot machines to casinos, and the firm's chain of gyms and health centres in Japan, both of which saw solid growth.

Konami has stood by its full year forecast in the wake of the results, and expects to see operating profits of 29 billion Yen (193 million Euro) when the year draws to a close on March 31st 2007.