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GI: Mad Catz Reports Debt Warning And Secures Additional Credit To Ship Rock Band

Tripon

Member
Mad Catz has reported that the opinion letter for its independent audit carries concerns over the company’s ability to pay its debts. An audit opinion letter, a document prepared by the independent auditor as a narrative accompaniment to the financial assessment, includes what is known as a “going concern” note.

This happens when a company is at risk of defaulting on its debt obligations. Mad Catz’s 2016 success hinges on the performance of Rock Band 4 (via co-publishing agreement with Harmonix), according to form 10-K filed with the SEC on June 25.

Mad Catz’s new funding amounts to $30 million in two pieces. One element is a $20 million line of credit that will increase to $35 million from September 1 through December 31, 2015, in order to ship Rock Band 4. The other $10 million is secured funding to Mad Catz Europe (a wholly-owned subsidiary). That funding is termed at three years, but can be canceled by the lender with three months notice.

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...-and-additional-credit-to-ship-rock-band.aspx
 
I hope thats some modest projections for Rock Band 4 because it certainly doesn't seem like its going to be a huge seller at this point.
 
Living on a prayer.

This sounds like a gamble. Maybe the series has been gone long enough that it will be fresh and appeal to the masses again.
 
Considering the game isn't even available for pre order in Australia yet (reps at E3 couldn't even tell me it was coming) I'm doubtful for the future of Mad Catz.
 
I think Rock Band can be successful, but it needs to push advertising hard during the holidays and get the buzz out there. I have faith in Harmonix and Mad Catz.
 
simpsons-awkward-collar-pull-o.gif
 
Let's say Mad Catz has to eventually close shop, you don't think someone would help out Harmonix?

Sweet expert analysis from some of these posts though.
 
I don't think rock band 4 will sell well at all. There are still people selling rock band and guitar hero's stuff for crazy cheap on Facebook groups and craigslist. Hell I've seen post where people are just giving that shit away. Those games are dead and gone and I would be suprised if either of those games sell well at all.
 
Placing that kind of bet on Rock Band seems... unwise. I wonder if they were already in pretty bad shape and just had to roll the dice on something big.
 
I don't understand this. Mad Catz used to he irrelevant trash bought on the cheap. Now they are the #1 source of fighting game tools across the world. How can they be struggling?

I want to give them $200 for a stick right now, but they haven't even produced enough for me to buy!
 
I don't understand this. Mad Catz used to he irrelevant trash bought on the cheap. Now they are the #1 source of fighting game tools across the world. How can they be struggling?

I want to give them $200 for a stick right now, but they haven't even produced enough for me to buy!

Investing millions into a dead genre is a pretty bad idea

I'm talking about Rock Band, not arcade sticks btw
 
As someone that had to deal with ceiling-high stacks of discounted Rock Band peripherals the first time around, this doesn't seem like a sane move for MadCatz at all. Why gamble your future on a genre that crashed and burnt so spectacularly just a few years beforehand?

Oh jeez didn't realize they were doing that poorly. Maybe I need to stock up on arcade sticks...

Don't worry. HORI will still be around.
 
One thing I never understood - why did they only offer the TE2 for next gen systems? $200 is well outside of the range I would buy a stick. Highest I would go is $129, like I regularly saw with sticks from last gen. Even $99 good quality sticks were not unheard of.
 
For years Madcatz has maintained a cycle, and I mean years! Where they almost look like they are about to go out of business and then at the last minute they secure more funding and everything's is OK until that runs out. Go check their share price history.

I don't see this cycle being any different, but they have a very long history of being shady that never gets documented because they make accessories and not games. Maybe this time being in bed with Harmonix will put them under the spotlight when they could make another less than respectable move...
 
what happens to my arcade sticks then? halp.

seriously, these guys couldn't release their sticks in europe on time. still waiting. i have hunch that they will price their sticks too high over here, too. it's hard to sell 200 euro sticks when the PS4 can be found for 300.
 
This isn't going to end well. $250 for those bundles is suicide. The original Rock Band and Rock Band 2's bundle were only $169, not sure what hey think they have here but it's too high priced.
 
Didn't all of the original RB games lose money on the instrument bundles? It's like Activision was the only ones who knew what they were doing in the packaged toy business.
 
For years Madcatz has maintained a cycle, and I mean years! Where they almost look like they are about to go out of business and then at the last minute they secure more funding and everything's is OK until that runs out. Go check their share price history.

I don't see this cycle being any different, but they have a very long history of being shady that never gets documented because they make accessories and not games. Maybe this time being in bed with Harmonix will put them under the spotlight when they could make another less than respectable move...

Sure, but people assumed the cycle was broken because their product has dramatically improved over the last 5+ years.
 
Holy crap!

I'd love to buy RB4. But the only local place with pricing on a band kit has it at $529 NZD or around $350 USD currently ...
 
I would love to support but the price is too high. Costs $300 for a bundle here. If it was $199 or less, I'd definitely get it.
 
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