Nintendo has recently addressed that they are reconsidering their stance on publishing mobile games. Nintendo identifies mobile business as one of key factor in the company’s long term strategy.
According to Nintendo’s annual report, their fundamental strategy is to expand to number of people who have access to Nintendo’s IP. They consider mobile business as one of these “target areas”.
The report says, “The mobile is one of the target areas. We aim for expanding the scope of our business by creating opportunities for consumers to encounter Nintendo IP through smart devices, which have built an extensive install base worldwide”.
This statement focuses that the company’s earlier stance of backing out from mobile business has changed. President Shuntaro Furukawa said that “We are not necessarily looking to continue releasing many new applications for the mobile market.” according to the Bloomberg article.
This statement was based on the fact that Nintendo expected that smartphone games would be a $1 billion business with its growth potential but could not attain that goal. Their mobile IP related income reached $474 million with a steady growth of 11.5% on year-on-year basis. This business is significantly weaker than compared to Nintendo’s other businesses.
Earlier, Nintendo promised to release atleast two to three mobile titles each year but could not fulfill it. Although the company has not promised on any new games yet, we could see some steps from their side to revaluate their mobile business.
