*Mainframe doubles revenues in ’99

vancouver-based Mainframe Entertainment doubled its revenues and posted a net profit in fiscal 2000 (ended March 31) and feels bullish about fiscal 2001.

Earnings in the most recent completed fiscal year totaled $1.4 million ($0.05 per share) on revenues of $32 million, a 106% increase over the $15.4 million in the previous year. Fiscal 1999 also resulted in a loss of $17 million ($1.23 per share).

Over the year, Mainframe delivered twice as many television episodes – 52, including 26 episodes of Beast Machines Transformers, 13 episodes of Weird-Ohs, three episodes of Beasties (aka Beast Wars) and 10 episodes of Shadowraiders (aka War Planets).

Fiscal 2001 revenues will be augmented by 26 episodes of Sony’s Heavy Gear, 26 episodes of Hasbro’s Action Man and the Harvey Entertainment video release Casper’s Haunted Christmas.

‘This was a great year for Mainframe Entertainment, where we built the foundation to continue to be a dominant company in the growing field of computer-generated animation,’ says company president and ceo Ian Pearson.

‘This solid foundation will allow us to begin to exploit our digital expertise further, especially in the areas of merchandising and licensing of our characters, games and feature film production.’

Production continues on Gulliver’s Travels with Imax Corp., called the first computer-animated film made especially for IMAX 3D theatres.

‘As we enter fiscal 2001, we have never felt better about our business,’ says Pearson.

On July 5, Mainframe shares traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange in the $2.40-per-share range, compared to the year high of $3.75 per share and a year low of $1.30 per share.

* Keystone turnaround

After lackluster first and second quarters in fiscal 2000, the third quarter results (ended April 30) for Vancouver’s International Keystone Entertainment show improvement in revenue and profit.

Net earnings for the period were $47,000 ($0.00 per share) on revenue of $3.8 million compared to a loss of $365,000 ($0.05 per share) on revenue of $3 million in the same period a year ago.

Expenses associated with the company’s film distribution activities accounted for $2.6 million over the period.

Keystone owns the worldwide rights to family film MVP: Most Valuable Primate, which is scheduled for release in the fall. Air Bud 3: World Pup is in post-production and should be delivered this summer.

In the first two quarters, revenue was $2 million compared to $11.6 million for the same period one year earlier. The net loss was $447,000 ($0.04 per share) compared to net earnings of $1.5 million ($0.23 per share) last year.

On July 4, shares traded at $0.51 per share compared to the year high of $1.60 per share and a year low of $0.35.