BIGBEN INTERACTIVE : First half of FY 2017/18: Sal

Bigben Interactive

Press release

23 October 2017, 18:00

Sales up by 34.2% in 2 ^nd quarter: 62.9 M€ 

First half of FY 2017/18: Sales of 110.0 M€ up by 29.6%

Confirmation of annual targets

Unaudited data

Accelerating growth in 2 ^nd quarter of FY 2017/18

After another dynamic 1st quarter, Bigben accelerated its growth in the 2nd quarter (July, August, September 2017) of its 2017/18 fiscal year with sales of 62.9 M €, up by 34.2% when compared to the 2nd quarter of the previous year. The three business segments of the group contributed to this achievement with in particular a strong increase in Gaming sales.

GAMING The Gaming segment in the 2nd quarter 2017/18 generated sales of € 22.5 million, an increase of 93.6% when compared to the second quarter of the previous year. · Accessories : In the wake of the 1st quarter, sales of Gaming accessories continued their strong growth (+ 156.3%) to 12.3 M€. This achievement results from the thriving sales of accessories for the Nintendo SWITCH ^TM console, the recurring success of the REVOLUTION Pro Controller ^TM under the PlayStation ® 4 license and the vigorous start of sales of the new version of the REVOLUTION Pro Controller 2 for PS4 ^TM .

· Publishing : At the same time, sales for Publishing grew by 55.8% to 9.1 M € thanks to the successful  release of the WRC7 game with sales exceeding those of the previous version ( WRC6 ), and the continuous growth of digital sales (+ 242.0%).

MOBILE The Mobile business segment recorded in the 2nd quarter of FY 2017/18 a 13.5% growth with 31.6 M € sales. This achievement is based on the favourable reception of Force CaseTM products (premium shockproof protection shells with a lifetime guarantee) and by the success of the Force Glass ^TM protection screens with 1,250,000 units sold since launch.

AUDIO The Audio business segment managed to generate sales of 8.8 M € in the 2nd quarter of FY 2017/18, up by 18.6% in a still sluggish market, thanks to the success of the widest range of new products launched under the Bigben brand over the last ten years, ongoing sales of Thomson Licensed products and the distribution of audio products through telco operators.

Strong dynamic of the half-year activity

Over the first half of FY 2017/18 (from 1 April to 30 September 2017), consolidated sales of the Bigben Group amounted to € 110.0 million i.e. an increase of 29.6% over the first half of the previous year, with a positive contribution from each of the Group businesses.

Outlook:

Strong growth continuing in the 2 ^nd half of FY 2017/18.

GAMING The Gaming business will benefit from publishing at least 6 new game titles over the period, The accessory activity should also see a further strong growth with ongoing sales of accessories for Nintendo SWITCH ^TM , and with increasing sales of the version n° 2 of the REVOLUTION Pro Controller ^TM , Controller for PlayStation ® 4 . Thanks to a strong partnership with Sony, Bigben will also launch in November the NACON Compact Controller ^TM , the new official wired Controller for PlayStation ® 4, which already has a substantial order intake.

MOBILE The Mobile business segment will be supported by the vitality of the Force Glass ^TM brand, by the deployment of the new Force Case ^TM brand and by the development of new ranges of accessories for premium smartphones. The higher price announced for the new IPhone X smartphone triggers an increasing need for innovative protection solutions. The Bigben group anticipated this evolution for several years and now benefits as a result of its advance in the development and the offer of such dedicated premium accessories.

AUDIO The Audio segment will benefit from the deployment of the Group new Lumin'Us ^TM   brand, its first lead product i.e. Bluetooth ® illuminated speakers with an innovative design which have been well received by the market. At the same time, Bigben will strengthen further the Thomson ® line-up.

Profitability: Confirmation of the annual Profit rates from Current Operations

For the first half of FY 2017/18 Bigben anticipates a significant increase of the Result from Current Operations when compared to the same period of previous financial year.

The very favourable trend since the beginning of the current financial year enables the Group to confirm its annual targets as follows:

• FY 2017/2018: sales from 235 M€ to 245 M€ and a Profit rate from Current Operations exceeding 7.0%,
• FY 2019/2020: sales exceeding 280 M€ and a Profit rate from Current Operations of 9%.

Upcoming publication:

Half year results 2017 / 2018:   Monday 20 November 2017 Press release after close of the stock market

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