Activision dethrones EA as largest game maker

200px-jj-kotm.jpgSANTA MONICA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATVI) was the #1 U.S. console and handheld publisher for the first eleven months of calendar 2007, according to The NPD Group. The company increased its market share for the eleven month period to a record 16.8%, a 7.9% increase over the same period last year.

For the month of November, Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock and Call of Duty 4™: Modern Warfare™ were the #1 and #2 best-selling titles respectively in dollars across all platforms, according to The NPD Group. Activision also had five of the top-10 best-selling games in dollars, including Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system and the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock for the PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system and the Wii™ home video game system. Additionally, Guitar Hero has remained the #1 best-selling franchise in the U.S. since January, according to The NPD Group.

“We continue to see strong consumer response to our wholly owned and internally developed titles — Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare,” said Robert Kotick, Chairman and CEO, Activision, Inc. “We are well positioned to continue our leadership position through the remainder of the year and are on track to delivering another record year of revenue growth and the most profitable year in our history.”

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products. Founded in 1979, Activision posted net revenues of $1.5 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007.

Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands, Australia, Japan and South Korea. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s World Wide Web site, which is located at www.activision.com.