Nintendo lost $260 million (Y25 billion) in the opening trading on Monday after it announced Friday that it slashed its net profit this year.
The decline in its net profit was brought by the failure of Wii U games console and the 3DS handheld unit to reach global targets. After failing to trade large number of sell orders, the company’s stock fell by as much as 19 percent.
Now, the Kyoto-based company is busy strategizing its next step after the loss.
Analysts pointed out a number of reasons for the company’s loss. First, the poor sales of its popular game console Wii U, which is now striving to go against the newer & faster Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4. This fiscal year, Wii U’s global sales were $6.2 million lower than its expected $9 million global sales.
Second is the fact that the many users already prefer playing on their phones and tablet computers than on specialized hardware. More so, not unlike the expensive titles used on game consoles, games for smartphones and tablets are downloadable at an affordable price.
Many suggest that it’s high time the Japanese multinational consumer electronics company welcome ideas on going mobile and let its well-liked characters like Mario run free on mobile devices. The company can either sell the games directly or license developers to create the games.
“A radical new beginning is the only way out,” said gaming industry consultant Serkan Toto to Financial Times.
Nintendo President and CEO Satoru Iwata seemed to be agreeing on the suggestions saying that his company was “thinking about a new business structure.”
“Given the expansion of smart devices, we are naturally studying how smart devices can be used to grow the game-player business,” he told FT.
However, many say that shifting to mobile is way overdue for Nintendo.
