Perfect World notes Q1 2013 decline due to upcoming release slate

Perfect World Co. Ltd has reported its Q1 financials for the period ending March 31, 2013 and the figures note a decline in profits, revenue and player base.

The firm noted the declines were due to continued development on its pipeline, as well as the lack of "promotional activities". Games currently in the works include Cryptic Studios' Neverwinter MMO for Europe and the US as well as Dota 2 and Swordsman Online for the market in China.

Perfect World also noted an increase in expenditure on R&D which also led to the decline in revenue and profits.

"During the quarter, we continued to primarily focus on developing new content for our portfolio and pipeline and slow down promotional activities," said Perfect World CEO Robert Xiao in a prepared statement.

"As we expected, the overall performance of our existing games in the first quarter was softer, but we are pleased with the recent progress we have made in our portfolio and pipeline development."

For Q1, revenue came in at RMB 624.5 million ($102m/£68m), down from RMB 718.5 million year-over-year. Net profit reported was RMB 131 million ($21.4m/£14.1m), compared to RMB 209.8 million year-over-year.

The firm's aggregate concurrent users fell from 804,000 to approximately 554,000 year-over-year.

Thanks, GI International.