7. Vivendi

FY08 Revenue: $1,498M, +17% (Rank: 8)
FY08 Operating Profit/Loss: $196M (Rank: 5)
FY09 Revenue Expectations: At least $4,000M after merger with Activision
Titles in Global Top 100: 1 (Rank: 16)
Units in Global Top 100: 0.6M (Rank: 19)
Review Average: 68% (Rank: 10)
 

Explanation of Ranking: Vivendi Games has the 8^th highest revenue of all companies on this list, or the 5^th highest among third parties. It also has the 5^th highest profit (here, an operating profit as a division within Vivendi SA) primarily due to World of Warcraft, the biggest MMOG with over 10.7 million subscribers worldwide. (Note: Vivendi Games uses a fiscal year that ends on 31 December, but to make comparisons to other companies more transparent all of its figures have been recomputed for a fiscal year ending on 31 March.)

Vivendi Games is essentially Blizzard Entertainment, which accounts for over 2/3 of the company's $1.5 billion in revenue, and three smaller divisions. Outside of Blizzard's World of Warcraft and its expansion (which launched in early 2007), the company's strongest releases were either based on long-established franchises – Crash of the Titans and Spyro: Eternal Night – or next-generation IP like Timeshift and World in Conflict.

After the merger with Activision, Vivendi Games became the Blizzard Entertainment division of the new company, and it is unclear what will happen to the other departments. Some older propeties – like Leisure Suit Larry and Kings Quest – will be available to the newly formed company.