RealNetworks announced today the results for Q1 2008. The company recorded revenue of $147.6 million, a nearly 15 percent increase year-on-year. In particular, the company highlighted the $31.8 million in revenue from the games division—growth of 33 percent over the year previous.
Flushed with the continued success of its gaming division, RealNetworks also announced its intention to spin-off its casual game business into an independent company. Pending final approval by the RealNetworks Board of Directors, this new gaming company will have up to 20 percent of its shares available in the initial public offering.
"RealNetworks was a pioneer and has been a leader in the casual games industry since we introduced RealArcade in 2001," said Rob Glaser, Chairman and CEO of RealNetworks. "We believe that spinning off our casual games business will give it the best opportunity to continue to flourish and lead."
The hope of RealNetworks is that this new separate gaming company will result in a pair of more focused and flexible companies. "Today's announcement demonstrates our commitment to create long-term value for RealNetworks' shareholders," said Michael Eggers, Senior Vice President and CFO of RealNetworks. "For investors, we anticipate that the spin off will create a pure-play casual games business with increased transparency, and that it will result in lower complexity in understanding and tracking RealNetworks' performance. We also think that the new structure will provide current and potential shareholders with two attractive investment options that may be more closely aligned with their various investment objectives."