Iwerks Reports Tenfold Increase in Its Losses

Iwerks Entertainment, a Burbank producer of virtual-reality and ride-simulation technology for movie theaters, said its losses for the third quarter were nearly 10 times higher than during the same three-month period a year earlier.

The company lost $8.61 million in the quarter ended March 31, compared to a year-earlier loss of $892,000. Iwerks said $5.6 million of the loss resulted from the write-down of the value of some of its film software.

Second-quarter revenues were up slightly, to $10.83 million from $10.01 million a year ago.

The third-quarter results brought Iwerks’ nine-month net loss to $10.54 million, up 275% from $2.8 million a year earlier. Sales for the fiscal year so far are up 46%, to $30.14 million from $20.64 million during the year-earlier period.