James Delahunty
28 Apr 2007 20:20
Nintendo has gotten a boost in profits thanks to demand for the Wii console and DS handheld. The company's net profits grew 77.2% to 174.3bn yen (US$1.4bn) in the year to 31 March and sales grew 90%. In the year, Nintendo sold 23.56 million DS consoles and hopes that figure will stay around the same for this year. Nintendo also hopes to sell 14 million Wii consoles in 2007/8, after selling 5.84 million in the year to March (since launch).
Nintendo share prices have doubled in the last year thanks to the success of its latest products. The products currently sold by the company aim to also appeal to casual gamers or even consumers who have never tried games consoles more than a handful of times. "The video game industry is now on a growth path," the company said.
Nintendo's Wii currently has two powerful rivals; Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3) and Microsoft's Xbox 360, but its lower price tag, innovation in control and differing views for "next generation" has helped it to outsell both since it was released.
Source:
BBC