Forbes: Nintendo making $6 profit on every Wii sold

by Randy Nelson { Dec 1st 2008 at 10:00PM }

While Sony and Microsoft dream of turning a profit on their consoles, Nintendo is doing just that. According to a new article from Forbes, the Big N makes $6 in operating profit from every Wii unit sold. Nearly 19 million units have been sold worldwide so far during 2008, earning Nintendo a tidy $114M in profit, taking that $6-per-system figure into account. That's not the extent of the interesting numbers in the article, though.

Forbes points out that, while Nintendo is turning a profit on hardware, the fact that its top-selling software is all first party means it is losing out on serious revenue normally brought in via licensing fees. Still, according to its figures, the magazine claims that there will be in the neighborhood of 100 million more pieces of Wii software sold in 2008 (220M) than the nearest competitor, Xbox 360, at 125M (PS3 is on track for 120M). One has to wonder, though, how many of those Wii games will be snagged from a bargain bin, given recent analyst data.

Tags: financial, forbes, it-prints-money, profit, wii

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

Markez @ Dec 1st 2008 10:03PM

Wonder how this stacks up with other consoles in gaming history, in terms of margin profit or loss on each unit sold. 6 beans seems like a lot in terms of operating revenue.

Also, is this an off-white, or sun worn yellow LE Wii they're releasing? SICK WHERE CAN I BUY IT OMOGMOGMG

Shmil @ Dec 1st 2008 10:06PM

Its a wii made with the SNES plastic

Jimmy @ Dec 1st 2008 10:22PM

What makes Joystiq so sure Microsoft isn't turning a profit on the xbox 360? Considering the 360 is more than 3 years old now, and using the new, cheaper jasper chips, I wouldn't doubt it for one second that it costs Microsoft less than $200 to make a 360.

HitNRun @ Dec 1st 2008 10:36PM

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I've read multiple stories as early as this summer saying that MS had firmly passed the profitability mark on its Pro consoles, by enough that they should still be in the black even after the price cut.

And Sony has to be close, considering they've barely made any price cuts at all.

This reads like news from Dec 1, 2006.

Markez @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:30AM

Wow people are genuinely getting outta hand on this thread. SO, let me ask again, I'm genuinely interested in this:

"Wonder how this stacks up with other consoles in gaming history, in terms of margin profit or loss on each unit sold?"

Anyone care to chime in, on topic? EH EH EH. Alright alright, I'll sneak some flames in... YOURE TIGER ELECTRONICS HANDHELD SUCKS, SCREWZ YOU HASBRO NOOBS

bigsofty @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:34AM

The WII, the worst purchase I ever made, crap games with wobbly controls... thank you games media for believing the hype and passing it down to us poor idiots...

Markez @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:36AM

Sigh.

Ayrkain @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:59AM

You're really better off looking for info like that elsewhere. NeoGAF might be a good place to start.

OMGOMG @ Dec 2nd 2008 11:48AM

Ah, console wars.

Mr.Ironic @ Dec 3rd 2008 10:40PM

Wait...hitnrun was on topic and he got voted down?

You wanted a comparison of the profit or loss of each console.

Brodo @ Dec 1st 2008 10:06PM

I get more and more ticked off everytime I see Nintendo's sales they have been making. The wii is a piece of crap! The last game I got was Mario Kart, and I dont see any games coming up that I am gonna buy

Cody @ Dec 1st 2008 10:15PM

Nice. And original.

Vegeta (aka Ska Oreo) @ Dec 1st 2008 10:16PM

ummm good for you? I guess?

In A World (XBL) @ Dec 1st 2008 10:23PM

Just think of it this way: more and more people playing Mario Kart. You can sign on at any time 24/7 and connect to a full game right away.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 1st 2008 10:28PM

That's wonderful, Brodo. Thanks for sharing.

DangerMouse @ Dec 1st 2008 10:31PM

Then hate consumers for buying a piece of crap.

tmacairjordan87 @ Dec 1st 2008 11:23PM

Oooh wait hang on, foetoid already did this once in this thread so I'll do this one for him

"What? How can you find nothing to play on the wii? I'm a picky hardcore gamer and I have 250 wii games and not 1 of them is shovelware...and I don't have galaxy or brawl!"

I think I did a pretty damn good job of imitating him, no?

offday @ Dec 1st 2008 11:39PM

While I don't think the wii is a piece of crap, I will say that recently Nintendo has been forgetting about the people who made them who they are. Stop focusing on the non-gamers. They're called non-gamers for a reason. Everyone has a hobby. Stop turning mine into something casual.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 1st 2008 11:58PM

"Stop turning mine into something casual."

Casual games have been around long before the Wii was even a concept, buddy. I'm pretty sure Nintendo had made it pretty clear that they were targeting the casual audience since before the Wii came out - people need to stop acting as though this is new.

What I don't understand is how Nintendo, a single developer, could put out some pretty high quality shit in the first few years of it's consoles lifetime and suddenly have those games amount to nothing because of two games targeted to the casual market exclusively.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:03AM

Oh, man, I reread that sentence of yours, Offday, and boy, did you sound like a douchebag. Since when are we the only ones entitled to games? Considering just how much we've had to play during these last few years, do you really take it that personally when a company decides to try and appeal to someone that isn't you?

offday @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:26AM

Wow, I'm being called a douchebag by a guy named the fatass of kickassness. There's nothing wrong with people doing hobbies "casually." You can play golf casually, you can play guitar casually, but none of these effect the hardcore crowd. Gaming is different. When the wii and the ds are shoveling out endless waves of casual games, then we have a problem. I haven't bought a wii game for months. Virtual console is the only reason I still have my wii.

I just hate seeing Nintendo push their best franchises aside to make room for casual games that are getting mediocre reviews at best. Even when a new real game comes out it gets dumbed down for the casual crowd. I'm sorry I obviously offended you because your girlfriend loves her wii fit or your mom can't get enough of brain age on her ds. But the real gamers want their games back.

offday @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:34AM

And thank God for the virtual console. We can only hope that when some depressed kid opens his present to find he got wii freaking fit for Christmas, he finds some wii points inside and uses them to discover what games use to be.

tmacairjordan87 @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:35AM

Then buy a ps3 or 360. There's only 1 system right now with that problem. It hasn't spread to the others yet, so go enjoy it.

mr nimblewick @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:37AM

"It hasn't spread to the others yet, so go enjoy it."

In fact, it seems that there are more high-rated "hardcore" games coming out than ever before, despite the Wii. This is why I have a hard time buying into the "wii is going to make the whole industry casual" argument.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 2nd 2008 12:57AM

First things first - I am a douchebag, but at least I come up front and admit it.

I'll break your post down piece by piece.

"Wow, I'm being called a douchebag by a guy named the fatass of kickassness."

Already dealt with that.

"There's nothing wrong with people doing hobbies "casually." You can play golf casually, you can play guitar casually, but none of these effect the hardcore crowd. Gaming is different. When the wii and the ds are shoveling out endless waves of casual games, then we have a problem."

Why is it a problem, exactly? The Wii had been from the start a system designed to appeal to the casual gamer - it sounds as though it's a problem for you because you bought it expecting some sort of 'hardcore' revolution.

"I haven't bought a wii game for months. Virtual console is the only reason I still have my wii."

Alrighty.

"I just hate seeing Nintendo push their best franchises aside to make room for casual games that are getting mediocre reviews at best."

Problems with this statement.

#1 - Nintendo themselves (a single developer) pumped out plenty of great games during the first two years of the Wii, and while they aren't bringing them out at near the same rate any more, I'm getting tired of people like you acting as though because they developed two casual-to-the-bone titles (Fit/Music, not counting Sports cuz that's a pack in), the games they made for the core never existed.

#2 - Wii Fit and Wii Music got mediocre reviews? Since when?

"Even when a new real game comes out it gets dumbed down for the casual crowd."

Like what? I could understand Galaxy fitting this argument, but that's where it ends (and even Galaxy was excused on the grounds that, while appealing to the casual crowd, did enough to impress the core gamer).

"I'm sorry I obviously offended you because your girlfriend loves her wii fit or your mom can't get enough of brain age on her ds. But the real gamers want their games back."

And here's the 'douchebag' statement coming right back up again. The 'real gamers' have their games. More of their games than ever. You and people like you act as though Nintendo making casual games has any effect on the amount of core games you're getting, when it doesn't. Not at all. Unless you're going to try and tell me that over the last two years (the same amount of time that the Wii has been out!), we've gotten LESS hardcore games than we had been getting before. In which case, I'll point out the '07/08 holiday seasons and laugh in your face.

The fact of the matter is that we aren't the only ones entitled to games, and while it may be off-putting to see titles like Wii Music, games that you wouldn't really enjoy, you have to understand that there are those out there - the casual gamers - who would and do enjoy titles like that, and that the fact that they do has not and will not have any effect whatsoever on the amount of quality titles we see over the next few years.

You know what I'm saying? And I wasn't calling you a douche to insult you, just trying to emphasize what it is that I speak.

Nikonov @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:16AM

"#2 - Wii Fit and Wii Music* got mediocre reviews? Since when?"

* - http://wii.ign.com/objects/827/827335.html
http://www.gamespot.com/wii/sim/wiimusic/index.html?tag=result;score;2

The list goes on. Calling it a game makes me ill.

Roto13 @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:16AM

"I just hate seeing Nintendo push their best franchises aside"

Wait, what? What are they pushing aside? In two years, we've gotten Mario, Zelda, Metroid Prime, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, and Smash Bros.. What's left? Star Fox and F-Zero?

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:20AM

Alright, ya got me with Wii Music, though to be fair, the sites that reviewed it from a casual's standpoint gave the game higher ratings than the ones that were reviewing the game for gamers.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:21AM

"Wait, what? What are they pushing aside? In two years, we've gotten Mario, Zelda, Metroid Prime, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, and Smash Bros.. What's left? Star Fox and F-Zero?"

That's precisely what I've been saying for the last few months.

Foetoid @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:22AM

Thanks for that Tmac, now i dont have to bother. Tho it's actually 14 Wii games and i dont have Galaxy, Brawl OR SSBB.

tmacairjordan87 @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:26AM

Oh damn. You'd think after seeing it as many times as I have from you I'd have it down by now.

Foetoid @ Dec 2nd 2008 1:33AM

Lol. The more people come here and cry about no Wii games, the more i'll just keep sayin the same shit. It's bollocks to think that myself can play games for 23 years, be on a very very limited gaming budget (so i HAVE to be picky) and i still have more than enough games to keep me very occupied. 35+ games to play, split fairly evenly between GC/VC/Wii. It's amazing what games are actually very good when you give them a chance. 2008 was bollocks for good Wii titles, but 2009 will be a lot better.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Dec 2nd 2008 4:09PM

Nice. Logical post gets downvoted.

Oh that's right, this is Joystiq.

knighty (GT: ZeraKnight) @ Dec 8th 2008 5:37PM

You know if you just want to play VC/GC games you could buy a Gamecube. Just because you didn't play the games on the Gamecube like those of us who GIVE A SHIT about gaming do, doesn't mean we should be forced to think that it's acceptable to use GC/VC games as a reason to buy the Wii. Fuck sake ¬_¬

gst @ Dec 8th 2008 8:50PM

I hate to play the "capitalism card," but I am going to because it needs to be brought in.

Nintendo is a company, not some old friend who is now hanging out with you less because the hot new "casual" market came around and just seemed so cool.

I'm sure Miyamoto and a large group of creative minds would love to devote all their time to make games that will get rated highly by the core gaming market. But, casual gamers have shown that they will buy stuff like Wii Music and Wii Fit.

Core gamers will get the most attention only when they are the most profitable market and, for the Wii, they are not. The software sales show that casual games will sell just as well if not better than the great core titles (and were likely developed for less $ as well).

As for the assertion that there are so many great hardcore games out there right now, I really disagree. I know nimblewick said "high-rated," so I'm not really disagreeing with his facts so much using it as a stepping stone to...

I am more worried about a lot of developers and games on 360 and ps3 and what they do to the core market than Nintendo.
The Nintendo releases may be sparse but, my god, at least they are different.
I don't mind killing things and blowing stuff up in a post-apocalyptic wasteland and whatnot but this is ridiculous. It is like when PS1 and N64 came out and half the good games on the market were platformers where you were some animal that collected shit. I didnt complain then because I like platformers, but, at this point, I have killed enough nazis and aliens to last me several lifetimes. I like these games, but I am very very sick of them.

That Nintendo's core gaming releases on Wii have been an action/adventure/rpg, a 4-player party brawler, a kart racer, a platformer in space, and an fps that never tries to be "gritty and realistic combat" almost redeems them for me.

Almost.

/end rant that has been made before and will be made again until the next genre or theme takes over

Mr Khan @ Dec 1st 2008 10:07PM

At launch the Wii cost Nintendo 21600 Yen, which at the time was $180

Now, of course, that much yen will buy you $226. Either way more than $6.

however, i would imagine they have reduced costs considerably between now and then. Though unlike the competition, they've been 65nm from the start, so it might be harder

Gun Barrier @ Dec 1st 2008 11:46PM

You are forgetting the cost of the 2 remotes, packaging, and shipping.

SKI @ Dec 2nd 2008 8:31AM

And R&D costs that need to be recuperated.

sam @ Dec 2nd 2008 3:54PM

Wii CPU is or was 90nm, according to Wikipedia. I would imagine it was small, cheap, and high-yield from the beginning, though, so there isn't as much of a profit to make from moving to a more advanced process. They may be saving money by sticking with an older plant or whatever, I don't know how that works.

Bluebrake @ Dec 1st 2008 10:08PM

I find it extremely unlikely that it's that low. Their methodology is suspect.

DWells55 @ Dec 2nd 2008 10:54AM

Agreed. It's pretty inexpensive technology in there, especially considering that the CPU is nearly identical to the GameCube, something I would imagine cuts down production costs considerably. If they only make $6 per console, that would mean Sony and Microsoft would be losing a fortune per console sold which is not the case.

Bluebrake @ Dec 2nd 2008 5:57PM

Exactly. If I'm not mistaken, the Gamecube made a profit at its $199 launch price, and remained profitable all the way down to its final price of $99. Now, five years later they're selling virtually the same hardware for $50 more than the GC ever was, and suddenly they're only making $6?

The Wii has some extra bells and whistles, not the least of which is the remote it's bundled with. But there's something seriously wrong with the math here.

Poisoned Al @ Dec 1st 2008 10:12PM

Yes, I've always wondered who was REALLY winning the console war, if anybody.

Nintendo shift a LOT of Wiis, but no games for the damn thing. Microsoft and Sony don't see as many machines, but the lisance money from all those games and movies (MS has a toe in the Blu-ray too remember with it's codex)