SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones)-Electronic Arts Inc. (ERTS) has tried all sorts of management magic to improve its profitability. Now, it's hoping a magician will raise its net income.

The Redwood City, Calif.-based videogame maker is hoping a game based on Harry Potter, the fictional wizard in training, will boost its sagging performance when it hits stores later this year. The title, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," is based on the latest movie in the popular franchise and is expected to arrive in June.

EA could certainly use a hit. On Tuesday, the company reported the latest in a string of quarterly losses. It hasn't posted a profit in over two years.

The company's shares rose 1.6% to $21.38, but fell sharply after-hours.

Since October, Chief Executive John Riccitiello has waved a wand over the company to conjure up some cost-cutting. EA has closed five of its game production studios, chopped headcount by more than 11% and many games that weren't performing well. But the spell of cost-cutting is wearing off; in a post-earnings interview, Eric Brown, the chief financial officer, said EA is ahead of its cost-cutting goals, adding, "we're done."

That means the focus shifts to growing revenue, a difficult task in the face of recession-weakened sales. In March, sales fell 17% from the year-ago period and this year's overall growth is expected to be only about half of what it was last year.

Fixing the revenue issue has been a problem for EA. As the recession lingers, game buyers have stuck to titles in series they've previously enjoyed. With the exceptions of the "Grand Theft Auto" and "Madden" franchises, as well as "The Sims" series, which sees a new title in June, EA has generally had trouble generating buzz for its games.

That's why EA is banking on Harry Potter, one of the most powerful franchises its had in years. The company once estimated "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" could boost earnings per share by 15 cents, which is roughly 15% of its expected per share profit for the fiscal year ending March 31.

Harry Potter is only the start though, EA believes. Seven of the upcoming EA games for Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s (NTDOY) Wii game console are expected to be at least million sellers, including the upcoming EA Sports Active.

Meanwhile, EA's backing its "Sims 3" release with a big marketing campaign that begins in about two weeks.

But most of the responsibility rests on Harry Potter. Investors had better hope that's not too much pressure for a young wizard apprentice.

-By Ben Charny; Dow Jones Newswires; 415-765-8230; ben.charny@dowjones.com