The same day fellow Publisher Take Two's stock sunk over $2.50, the shares of Activision went through the roof, rising $2.59--15.9 percent--to end the day at $19 even, a 52-week high. The striking rise came after the company revealed Q3 earnings of $480 million, $90 million above its previous estimate of $390 million.

　　In its Q3 report, Activision gave three reasons for its newfound success--Call of Duty and Tony Hawk's Underground, and True Crime: The Streets of L.A. After praising THUG for "rejuvenating the franchise," CEO Bobby Kotick predicted the two new titles would start successful series of their own. "In the case of Call of Duty and True Crime we've established new franchises that we'll get a lot of opportunity to leverage over time," Kotick told Reuters. "The increased risk that comes from increased cost is offset by the predictability of franchises." (The console version of Call of Duty, Call of Duty: Finest Hour, is due in Q2 2004.)

　　It was the second day this week Activision saw its stock climb. On Tuesday, the company's share price was boosted nearly 10 percent when NPD numbers revealed its November sales had increased 46 percent over 2002.