The president of Nintendo said that the successor to the Nintendo Switch will be announced within this fiscal year, but the company's stock price is falling due to the forecast of a decrease in net profit in the financial results announced at the same time.
Seven years have passed since the release of the Nintendo Switch, and rumors of a new Nintendo hardware have been circulating constantly. Several overseas media outlets have
This is Furukawa, the president of Nintendo. We will be announcing the successor to the Switch during this fiscal year for the first time in nine years since we announced the existence of the Nintendo Switch in March 2015. We will also be holding a Nintendo Direct in June to announce the Switch software lineup for the second half of 2024, but this will not include the successor model. Please do not misunderstand.
— Nintendo Co., Ltd. (Corporate Public Relations/IR) (@NintendoCoLtd) May 7, 2024
(PDF file)Consolidated Results for the Years Ended March 31, 2023 and 2024
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2024/240507e.pdf
Nintendo Shares Fall on Weak Outlook While Next Switch Awaited - Bloomberg
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-07/nintendo-braces-for-profit-decline-while-users-await-next-switch
Nintendo pre-announces a Switch 2 announcement is coming… eventually | Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2024/05/nintendo-pre-announces-a-switch-2-announcement-is-coming-eventually/
Nintendo posted Furukawa's comments regarding the successor to the Nintendo Switch on its corporate account. According to the post, the successor to the Nintendo Switch is scheduled to be officially announced by March 2025. In addition, it was mentioned that no information regarding the successor to the Nintendo Switch will be announced at the Nintendo Direct to be held in June 2024.
It will be seven years in 2024 since the release of the Nintendo Switch, but as Furukawa said in his comment, 'It's been nine years since we announced the existence of the Nintendo Switch in March 2015,' there was a gap of two years between the announcement of the Nintendo Switch and its release in March 2017. However, multiple media outlets have reported that the Nintendo Switch successor is aiming for a release between the end of 2024 and early 2025, so even if the Nintendo Switch successor is announced in the second half of 2024, it is thought that there will not be a long gap until the release.
Nintendo reportedly informed game publishers of delay in release of Switch successor 'Nintendo Switch 2' (tentative name) - GIGAZINE
Furukawa's announcement was made in conjunction with the announcement of financial results for the fiscal year ending March 2024. The financial results predict a decrease in sales, with 13.5 million units sold in 2024 compared to 15.7 million units sold in 2023. The financial results also predict a 39% decrease in net profit and a 19% decrease in sales in fiscal 2024. The graph below shows the global sales volume of Nintendo Switch consoles shown in the financial statements, with red representing the number of units sold of the initial Nintendo Switch model, orange representing the number of units sold of the Nintendo Switch Lite, and blue representing the number of units sold of the Nintendo Switch (OLED model). The figures for 2024 are forecast values, and while the number of OLED models is expected to increase to some extent, the initial model is expected to decrease significantly, resulting in a decrease in overall sales.
On the other hand, the graph below, which was also published in the financial statements, shows the number of active players on the Nintendo Switch platform, which has been increasing every year, with the latest data from April 2023 to March 2024 showing that it is 123 million, the highest ever.
In its financial statements, Nintendo claims that the number of players on the platform continues to increase, with 'the number of 'annual play users' from April 2023 to March 2024 reaching a record high of over 123 million.' In addition, while predicting that Nintendo Switch sales in 2024 will be lower than usual, the company commented that 'In terms of hardware, we will continue to convey the appeal of the Nintendo Switch, and aim to spread the popularity of the current generation of Nintendo Switch from 'one per household' to 'multiple per household' and even 'one per person.'' However, according to Bloomberg, following the financial statements and Furukawa's post, Nintendo's stock price fell 4.9% on the Tokyo market.
'Given Furukawa's announcement that the next-generation console will be announced in fiscal 2024, with the release date no earlier than 2025, it seems difficult to predict 13.5 million units for the current console,' said SMBC Securities analyst Eiji Maeda. Industry analyst Serkan Toto added, 'Now that Furukawa has announced the next-generation console, I think the only option to hit the 13.5 million unit target is to lower the price or offer attractive software bundles.'
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