Sega Sammy doubles profits

Sega Sammy has reported profits of YEN 41.5bn for the financial year ended March 31st, 2011.

The company has more than doubled its profits in the previous year, up 104.8 per cent from YEN 20.2bn. Sales rose by 3.1 per cent year-on-year to YEN 396.7bn.

Key sales drivers were identified as Wii and DS title Sonic Colours (2.1m units) and Iron Man 2 (1.5m units). Other highlights included 830,000 copies of Vanquish, and 600,000 units of Shogun 2: Total War, which was released just weeks before the financial year ended.

In total, Sega Sammy’s console and PC games division shifted 18.7 million units throughout the year. Europe was identified as the largest market, accounting for 8.2m sales, following by 7.8m in the US.

Looking forward, the company expects to sell 23.2m units worldwide in the next financial year, with Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games highlighted as one of the biggest releases.