Press releases
Acquisition of Games Station Limited – Referral to Competition Commission
09/08/2007
GAME Group plc (“GAME”) notes the announcement of the decision by the Office of Fair Trading (“OFT”) to refer its acquisition of Games Station Limited (“Gamestation”) to the Competition Commission.
Peter Lewis, Chairman of GAME, said
“We are disappointed that the OFT found difficulty in clearing the transaction. We firmly believe that a combination of GAME and Gamestation will not give rise to any substantial lessening of competition and intend to vigorously pursue this position before the Competition Commission.
GAME will cooperate fully with the Competition Commission process, and demonstrate how this transaction brings very strong consumer, commercial and employee benefits in what is an increasingly competitive market.”
Trading Update
“Since our AGM in July the PC and video games market has continued to experience strong growth. For the first 26 weeks to 28 July 2007, total Group sales (including Gamestation from 2 May 2007) were up by 78.7% and like for like (lfl) Group sales (excluding Gamestation) for the same period were up by 45.6%. In the UK and Ireland, total sales were up by 78.2% and lfl sales were up by 47.8%. In our International business, total sales and lfl sales were up by 79.9% and 39.5% respectively. We expect the group to report a net profit before tax of between £2m and £3m for the half year to 31 July 2007 (31 July 2006: loss before tax £7.1m), before non-recurring costs relating to the acquisition of Gamestation.
Looking forward, GAME is well positioned to enhance customer choice and maximise shareholder value.”
