August 11 – According to Nikkei News, video game maker Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said he is not currently considering raising the price of its flagship console Switch to help ease the gap between increasing production and shipping costs so as not to scare away consumers.
Shuntaro Furukawa said, “We are competing in a global environment of diverse entertainment, and we always think about pricing in terms of the value of the entertainment we provide.” He said Nintendo has sold 100 million Switch games to date, which is important to maintain the company’s overall business momentum.
Earlier this year, in August, Nintendo confirmed that it did not intend to raise the price of the Nintendo Switch in Japan. Bloomberg recently asked the publisher, as well as other console makers Microsoft and Sony, about the possibility. Nintendo responded that it currently has “no plans” to raise prices.
Currently, the yen is depreciating, having fallen 21 percent in the past year. As a result, electronics manufacturers have been slightly increasing the price of electronic products to compensate. Currently, consoles are $100 (about 676 yuan) cheaper around the world, except in Japan. All three major console developers have reason to worry that raising console prices will make players and developers uncompetitive.
