The division’s sales were up due to higher direct market sales, driven by licensed titles; book channel sales, which were driven by originals (They Called Us Enemy, March, Locke & Key); game sales, which were up $270,000 due to strong releases; and growing digital sales, the company said.
The division also reported a profit of $100,000 for the quarter, up from a break-even quarter in the year-ago quarter, a substantial turnaround from the $508,000 loss in Q2 2021 (see "IDW Publishing Loses $508,000").
Sales by IDW Media Holdings as a whole were down to $6.8 million from $8.5 million in the year-ago quarter; IDW Entertainment had no revenue in the quarter, although sales from another season of Locke & Key are expected in Q4. The entertainment division lost $1.8 million for the quarter.
The forgiveness of IDW’s first PPP loan, which hit the books this quarter, brought the company-wide loss down to $941,000 for the quarter, much improved from the $4.5 million loss in the same quarter a year ago. A second tranche will be forgiven in a future quarter.
IDW reported that it had completed the capital raise tied to its move to the American Exchange (see "IDW Prices Public Offering"), including the underwriter’s overallotment, raising $9.6 million, which the company intends to invest in new content.