Company rides Game Boy Advance sales to a 22.6 billion yen ($204 million) profit, counting on DS for rest of fiscal year.
Nintendo"s financial report for the first fiscal quarter shows amazing results! The profits had nearly doubled compared to last year. Great sales of Gameboy Advance, SP, GC and other merchandises contributed to the profit.
Kyoto, Japan-based Nintendo reported earnings of 22.6 billion yen ($204 million) during the three month period ending June 30, compared to 11.5 billion yen ($103 million) over the same period in 2003. Sales of game software rose 11 percent to 42 billion yen ($375 million), contributing to most of the profits.
The main support came from Nintendo"s handheld, however. While revenues from hardware sales fell overall, some 13 percent to 39.5 billion yen ($353 million), the company still sold 2.3 million GBAs during the first fiscal quarter, helping bolster hardware sales as the GameCube, and, more imminently, the GBA, head into the end of their development cycles. Furthermore, Nintendo was able to cut production costs on its platforms 21 percent compared to last year.
Looking ahead, the company is counting on its new handheld device, the DS, to post big numbers when it debuts in Japan and the US before the end of 2004. Over 120 games are in development for the platform, with 20 of them coming from Nintendo. "The Nintendo DS will change the future of hand-held gaming," said Nintendo president Saturo Iwata.
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