6. Ubisoft

FY08 Revenue: $1,467M, +62% (Rank: 10)
FY08 Profit/Loss: $173M (Rank: 6)
FY09 Revenue Expectations: $1,560M, +6%
Titles in Global Top 100: 6 (Rank: 5)
Units in Global Top 100: 8.7M (Rank: 5)
Review Average: 63% (Rank: 16)
 

Explanation of Ranking: Ubisoft's revenue puts it 10^th overall and 7^th among third parties, while its strong profit puts it 6^th overall (5^th among third parties). It has also shown robust growth over the past three years, with revenues up 62% over FY07.

Ubisoft's key title in the past year was clearly Assassin's Creed, a high-budget action game that drew in players by the millions and took a spot in the NPD Group's top 10 selling games of 2007 (for the Xbox 360 version). Taking an untested property to the top of the annual sales chart in just two months would be noteworthy for any company.

And for Ubisoft, it's particularly important given its reliance on tested franchises, like Tom Clancy-branded games and Prince of Persia series. In fact, two titles from the latter series – Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 and Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 – have been key to Ubisoft's sales during this same period.

Ubisoft has also published several games designed for non-traditional demographics. Titles like Imagine: Animal Doctor appear designed for younger players, and especially female players. Titles like My French Coach, whatever their quality, are not created to appeal to teenage boys. Ubisoft has also actively pursued consumers in the Wii market, and is establishing the Raving Rabbids and Red Steel titles as ongoing franchises.

In the coming year, Ubisoft has several big titles, including Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction, as well as a true next-generation Prince of Persia currently scheduled for a late 2008 release. Perhaps more importantly, Ubisoft's CEO, Yves Guillemot has revealed that the company has set aside $1.2 billion for acquisitions in the near future. Specifically, Ubisoft sees Activision Blizzard and EA's pursuit of Take-Two as signs that it must grow to remain competitive.