According to GameSpot, execs at Viacom (NYSE: VIA) are pleased with the initial acceptance by consumers for its high-profile game The Beatles: Rock Band. The company said that expectations for the title, which is distributed by Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS), have been surpassed, and that a quarter of the inventory has already moved off retail shelves. Impressive.
Recently, I wrote an article about The Beatles game and how it might impact the Guitar Hero franchise from Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI). I'm a shareholder of the latter, so I'm obviously biased on the subject. I want Rock Band's competitor to win the battle, no question.
Thankfully, GameDaily is reporting that Activision Blizzard seems to be holding up just fine. The publisher said that Guitar Hero 5 is selling four units for every one unit sold by The Beatles: Rock Band in the United States. In some other parts of the world, the ratio is even higher (the specific markets are not mentioned).
Viacom has a lot riding on its latest Rock Band iteration. By leveraging The Beatles, the company is trying to give its music-gaming franchise a big push. The legendary group's trademark means instant recognition to older demos, a fact that might broaden the appeal of Viacom's video game. Previously, however, I tackled the issue about acceptance by the younger demos. No matter how much you want to engage people over 40 who don't necessarily play around with a Sony (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 3 or a Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Xbox 360, you still want to keep the under-20 crowd enthusiastic for the product.
It's probably too early to gauge the exact quantity of impact delivered by The Beatles: Rock Band. I want to see how the data shape up over the next several weeks. What will the demand levels be for Christmas? Viacom says it should move all of its inventory by November. It will be interesting if this does indeed occur. From a very, very anecdotal perspective, I don't perceive any signs of an impending shortage. But my perspective might be meaningless.
In any case, I'm not so worried about Activision Blizzard and Guitar Hero 5. For now, the brand equity surrounding the title remains resilient. I expect Activision Blizzard to do very well this holiday season with its upcoming software slate. As for Viacom and EA, they should do well enough with their slate; I just hope they don't come close to my company ...
Disclosure: I own Activision Blizzard; positions can change without notice.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-20-2009 @ 4:06AM
brett said...
Again, all these reports about GH 5 outselling TB:Rb are just wrong. While it has outsold the Beatles game in Europe, according to vgchartz.com, TB:RB has outsold Guitar Hero both worldwide and in the US. In fact, Rock Band's first week US sales nearly equalled Guitar Hero's sales to date in its first two weeks.