Japanese video game giant Nintendo said today that its annual operating profit had more than doubled as sales hit a record high on surging demand for its Wii and DS consoles.
The company predicted another year of record net profits but said the pace of growth would slow as a stronger yen curbs overseas revenues. Net profit rose 47.7% to an all-time high of 257.34 billion yen ($2.48 billion) in the fiscal year to March. It missed its own previous forecast for a 275 billion yen net profit as the effect of the stronger yen started to bite.
Operating profit surged to 487.22 billion yen from 226.02 billion the previous year as revenue leapt 73% to 1.67 trillion yen.
Nintendo can barely keep up with demand for the Wii, which is known for its innovative motion-sensitive controller and - unlike rival Sony's PlayStation 3 - is aimed at customers who normally would not play video games.
Nintendo said it had sold 18.61 million Wii consoles in the fiscal year, lifting total sales since the launch in December 2006 to 24.45 million units. It sold 1.85 million 'Wii Fit' boards, which can be used for sports and games including yoga, virtual snowboarding, ski-jumping and aerobics.
Nintendo has long dominated the market for handheld machines and continues to enjoy strong demand for its double-screen Nintendo DS, selling 30.31 million units over the fiscal year. 'Brain-training' DS games also did well.
With a stronger yen cutting into its overseas earnings, the Kyoto-based company sees a more modest 8.8% increase in operating profits to 530 billion yen and a 7.6% gain in revenue to 1.80 trillion yen.
For the current fiscal year to next March, Nintendo expects a 26.3% increase in net profits to 325 billion yen, with a stronger yen set to reduce earnings by 12 billion yen.
Nintendo aims to sell 28 million DS consoles and 25 million Wiis this fiscal year.
