UbiSoftologist
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10.07.04, 11:00 AM ET
AFX News Limited
TOKYO (AFX-ASIA) - Nintendo Co Ltd is confident of maintaining its dominance of the portable game market even as it prepares for competition in the segment with Sony Corp unit Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said.
Nintendo said it will release Nintendo DS, a new portable game console with double screens, touch screen and wireless LAN, in the US from late November and in Japan from the start of December, at a cost of about 15,000 yen.
Sony Computer Entertainment is introducing PlayStation Portable (PSP), a hand-held game version of its hugely successful PlayStation stand-alone game consoles in Japan in winter, and in the US and Europe in spring, next year.
The Sony unit has yet to release the price for PSP although reports estimate it will cost around 250-300 usd.
While PSP features multi- and high-functions, as it can play DVD quality movies, Nintendo DS focuses on more easy-to-play features.
"Video game consoles have achieved a major break-through in terms of technology and function in the past 20 years, while the game market has been shrinking recently," Iwata told reporters.
According to the most recent survey by the Computer Entertainment Suppliers' Association, the Japanese video game market contracted for a third consecutive year in 2003, with the market size dropping to only 60 pct of the level seen in 1997, when the market peaked.
"The complication of games is prompting the growing number of so-called light users to not play games anymore, while blocking those who have never played games to try," he added.
"I feel a strong sense of crisis for the Japanese game industry's prospects but the launch of the Nintendo DS is our answer to the shrinking game market in Japan," Iwata said.
"We believe Nintendo DS is easy to play and fun to play, therefore, it should appeal to anybody regardless of gender, age and experience," he added.
"And I am sure that the reason why EA (ElectronicArts - the world's largest game software maker) has decided to offer its hugely successful 'Madden' (American Football game title) to Nintendo DS simultaneously with the launch of DS is because EA sees a strong possibility of success in our new console," Iwat said.
Altogether, Nintendo will make available 12 game titles when it releases Nintendo DS and increase the titles to 14 before the end of December.
In the past year to March, Nintendo achieved global sales of 17.59 mln Gameboy Advance portable game consoles, and sold 74.89 mln copies of the game software for its Gameboy Advance.
"We target global sales of some 4.0 mln consoles by the end of March next year, but we believe this new totally new portable game consoles should match the peak sales of our Gameboy Advance consoles in the future," Iwata said.
Iwata also expressed confidence in beating the forthcoming competition in a 400-bln-yen portable game market with Sony Computer Entertainment.
Sony boasts the handheld console will be capable of producing graphics and sound quality equal to Sony's hugely popular PlayStation2.
"I believe that the old trick of success - the combination of high-spec game consoles and advanced graphics - no longer works," Iwata said.
Nintendo, to add more value to Nintendo DS, which has pre-installed wireless LAN, said it plans to start offering download services of key game data directly to Nintendo DS holders, but did not disclose details.
Nintendo said it does not position Nintendo DS as the successor to the Gameboy Advance SP portable game console, but plans to take advantage of the new handheld game console to expand the portable game console market.
For the year to March 2005, Nintendo is projecting global sales of 14 mln units for Gameboy Advance SP portable game machines and 70 mln copies of portable game software.
"I believe that if two separate consoles are appropriately priced, demand for cheap one will not wane so easily," Iwata said. "As a matter of fact, Gameboy Advance SP can achieve in this year the same level of sales as last year when we saw a very robust sales record."
Nintendo has recently cut the domestic retail price of its high-end product Gameboy Advance SP by 21.6 pct to 9,800 yen per console.
Meantime, Iwata also confirmed a plan to enter the animated film business soon. He did not give any details.
Iwata also said his firm may offer the maximum annual dividend of 270 yen per share in the year to March 2005, citing brisk profit growth.
Nintendo recently said it has raised its first half to September net profit forecast to 46 bln yen from 25 bln because it expects to book foreign exchange gains due to a weaker yen.
The Kyoto-based firm has also increased its year to March 2005 net profit forecast to 84 bln yen from 70 bln seen previously.
AFX News Limited
TOKYO (AFX-ASIA) - Nintendo Co Ltd is confident of maintaining its dominance of the portable game market even as it prepares for competition in the segment with Sony Corp unit Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said.
Nintendo said it will release Nintendo DS, a new portable game console with double screens, touch screen and wireless LAN, in the US from late November and in Japan from the start of December, at a cost of about 15,000 yen.
Sony Computer Entertainment is introducing PlayStation Portable (PSP), a hand-held game version of its hugely successful PlayStation stand-alone game consoles in Japan in winter, and in the US and Europe in spring, next year.
The Sony unit has yet to release the price for PSP although reports estimate it will cost around 250-300 usd.
While PSP features multi- and high-functions, as it can play DVD quality movies, Nintendo DS focuses on more easy-to-play features.
"Video game consoles have achieved a major break-through in terms of technology and function in the past 20 years, while the game market has been shrinking recently," Iwata told reporters.
According to the most recent survey by the Computer Entertainment Suppliers' Association, the Japanese video game market contracted for a third consecutive year in 2003, with the market size dropping to only 60 pct of the level seen in 1997, when the market peaked.
"The complication of games is prompting the growing number of so-called light users to not play games anymore, while blocking those who have never played games to try," he added.
"I feel a strong sense of crisis for the Japanese game industry's prospects but the launch of the Nintendo DS is our answer to the shrinking game market in Japan," Iwata said.
"We believe Nintendo DS is easy to play and fun to play, therefore, it should appeal to anybody regardless of gender, age and experience," he added.
"And I am sure that the reason why EA (ElectronicArts - the world's largest game software maker) has decided to offer its hugely successful 'Madden' (American Football game title) to Nintendo DS simultaneously with the launch of DS is because EA sees a strong possibility of success in our new console," Iwat said.
Altogether, Nintendo will make available 12 game titles when it releases Nintendo DS and increase the titles to 14 before the end of December.
In the past year to March, Nintendo achieved global sales of 17.59 mln Gameboy Advance portable game consoles, and sold 74.89 mln copies of the game software for its Gameboy Advance.
"We target global sales of some 4.0 mln consoles by the end of March next year, but we believe this new totally new portable game consoles should match the peak sales of our Gameboy Advance consoles in the future," Iwata said.
Iwata also expressed confidence in beating the forthcoming competition in a 400-bln-yen portable game market with Sony Computer Entertainment.
Sony boasts the handheld console will be capable of producing graphics and sound quality equal to Sony's hugely popular PlayStation2.
"I believe that the old trick of success - the combination of high-spec game consoles and advanced graphics - no longer works," Iwata said.
Nintendo, to add more value to Nintendo DS, which has pre-installed wireless LAN, said it plans to start offering download services of key game data directly to Nintendo DS holders, but did not disclose details.
Nintendo said it does not position Nintendo DS as the successor to the Gameboy Advance SP portable game console, but plans to take advantage of the new handheld game console to expand the portable game console market.
For the year to March 2005, Nintendo is projecting global sales of 14 mln units for Gameboy Advance SP portable game machines and 70 mln copies of portable game software.
"I believe that if two separate consoles are appropriately priced, demand for cheap one will not wane so easily," Iwata said. "As a matter of fact, Gameboy Advance SP can achieve in this year the same level of sales as last year when we saw a very robust sales record."
Nintendo has recently cut the domestic retail price of its high-end product Gameboy Advance SP by 21.6 pct to 9,800 yen per console.
Meantime, Iwata also confirmed a plan to enter the animated film business soon. He did not give any details.
Iwata also said his firm may offer the maximum annual dividend of 270 yen per share in the year to March 2005, citing brisk profit growth.
Nintendo recently said it has raised its first half to September net profit forecast to 46 bln yen from 25 bln because it expects to book foreign exchange gains due to a weaker yen.
The Kyoto-based firm has also increased its year to March 2005 net profit forecast to 84 bln yen from 70 bln seen previously.
