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Nintendo has kept players interested in its ageing Switch console series through key games with characters such as Super Mario and Zelda. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) trimmed its holding in Nintendo Co., a day after reports that a senior executive at the kingdom's mammoth sovereign wealth fund said it was considering upping its stake. The PIF reduced its stakehold in the Japanese video game giant to 7.54% from 8.58% previously, according to a Japanese regulatory filing. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is also the chairman of Savvy Games Group. Nintendo has been grappling with a slowing console gaming market and an aging product by way of its flagship Switch hybrid console — its best-selling gear ever, which sold 143.4 million units worldwide.

Persons: Mario, Zelda, Prince Faisal bin Bandar, Saud —, —, Prince Faisal, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, it's Organizations: Nintendo, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Nintendo Co, Games, Tokyo, Kyodo, Games Group, Microsoft, Sony Locations: Sultan, Saudi Arabia, Saudi

☆ Xbox is now on sale at Target for less than it was on Black Friday
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewThe Xbox Series S is on sale for cheaper than it was on Black Friday after reports Microsoft would share Xbox exclusives with other gaming platforms. The Xbox Series S, which normally retails at $299, is on sale at Target for $219, or about $80 off. The Series S is already the budget version of the current console, selling at a retail price of $200 cheaper than the Xbox Series X, which boasts higher-level graphics performance and more storage. The deal clocks in even lower than the lowest Black Friday deal for the console, which saw them going for $229.99 on sale at Dell, according to IGN. Sony has sold more than 50 million PlayStation 5 consoles since its release in November 2020, while the Xbox Series S and Series X have sold about 21 million units, IGN reported .

Persons: —, Peter Kafka Organizations: Service, Microsoft, Target, Business, Dell, IGN, Xbox, Sony, Financial Times, PlayStation, Nintendo, Activision Blizzard, Netflix

☆ Nintendo stock could rise by 30% on Switch 2 success, analyst says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailNintendo stock could rise by 30% on Switch 2 success, analyst saysDavid Gibson, senior research analyst at MST Marquee, has predicted that the shares of Nintendo could increase by up to 30%. Gibson sees the stock rerating thanks to the Japanese company's new theme park venture in Florida, which is expected to bring in more revenue. Additionally, the launch of Nintendo's next-generation device later this year could result in a migration of its existing 120 million users from the current Switch console.

Persons: David Gibson, Gibson, Nintendo's Organizations: Nintendo Locations: Florida

☆ Nintendo's stock could rise by 30%, say analysts — if it overcomes these hurdles
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Gibson, a senior research analyst at financial services firm MST Marquee, has set a price target of 11,000 Japanese yen ($74) for Nintendo's stock. This represents a 31% upside over the current price. He told the investment bank's clients that Nintendo could delay the Switch 2 launch if the momentum for the current console remains strong. The analyst has rated Nintendo a buy but set a conservative price target of 8,400 yen. However, if the new console fails to gain traction with consumers, Gibson cautioned that Nintendo's stock is likely to miss his price target.

Persons: David Gibson, Gibson, Mario, That's, isn't, Jefferies, Atul Goyal, Goyal, Junko Yamamura, — CNBC's Arjun Kharpal Organizations: Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Universal Parks & Resorts, Mario Bros, CNBC, Citi Locations: United States, Germany, Florida

TOKYO (AP) — Nintendo reported healthy sales and profits on the back of the hit “Super Mario Bros. Wonder” game, prompting the Japanese video game maker to raise its full fiscal year forecasts. Kyoto-based Nintendo Co. said Tuesday that demand for what it called the first completely new Super Mario game in the series remained strong. More than 10.7 million units of the latest Super Mario game have been sold around the world since it went on sale in October, according to Nintendo. Nintendo, which did not break down quarterly numbers, expects a full year profit of 440 billion yen ($3 billion), up from an earlier projection for a 420 billion yen ($2.8 billion) profit. The Super Nintendo World park is set to open next year in Florida.

Persons: Mario, ”, “ Mario, Kong, Peach, ___ Yuri Kageyama Organizations: TOKYO, — Nintendo, Nintendo Co, Nintendo, U.S, Universal Studios Locations: Kyoto, Japan, Florida

☆ Nintendo is expected to launch the 'Switch 2' console this year. Here's what to expect
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-08 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Splatoon 3 proved to be a hit in Japan, helping keep momentum for Nintendo's ageing Switch console. Nintendo has sold 132.46 million units of the Switch, making it the company's second-most successful console after the handheld Nintendo DS. If the Switch remained popular in the holiday quarter then Nintendo could push a new console out to the Fall of this year, Goyal said. If Switch sales dropped in the December quarter, the new device could come as early as Spring or Summer, he added. Kantan Games' Toto said he expects the successor to be a "new device and not just an upgrade."

Persons: Philip Fong, Mario, Zelda, Serkan Toto, Piers Harding, Atul Goyal, Goyal, I'm, Nintendo's, Harding, Rolls, Toto, Moffett Nathanson, Will Organizations: Nintendo, AFP, Getty, CNBC, Kantan Games, Ampere, Jefferies, Mario Bros, Moffett Locations: Japan, Tokyo

April-September profit at Nintendo Co., which didn’t break down quarterly results, totaled nearly 271.3 billion yen ($1.8 billion), up from 230 billion yen a year earlier. Sales surged 21% to 796 billion yen ($5.3 billion). Ahead of the holidays, Nintendo is planning to release the “Super Mario RPG” game software and Pokemon games. Nintendo, based in Kyoto, started selling “Super Mario Bros. Wonder” last month, as the first totally new Super Mario series game played in side-scrolling mode in more than a decade. Nintendo raised its full fiscal year profit forecast to 420 billion yen ($2.8 billion) from the 340 billion yen ($2.3 billion) estimate it gave in May.

Persons: Mario, “ Mario, Zelda, ”, it’s, ___ Yuri Kageyama Organizations: TOKYO, — Nintendo, Nintendo Co, Nintendo, Mario Bros, “ Mario Kart, U.S Locations: ”, Kyoto

☆ Foxconn founder Terry Gou lies low in Taiwan election as China tax probe reverberates
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Terry Gou, founder of Taiwan's Foxconn poses for pictures while saluting during a news conference in Taoyuan, Taiwan April 5, 2023. But three months out from the election, Gou, whose net worth is estimated by Forbes at $6.7 billion, has gone to ground. China claims Taiwan as its own and believes Lai, who leads opinion polls, is a separatist bent on a formal declaration of independence. Since the Global Times report came out, Gou's team has declined to comment, referring questions to Foxconn itself. Gou remains a lauded figure at Foxconn after stepping down as chairman in 2019, referred to reverentially as "the founder".

Persons: Terry Gou, Taiwan's, Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Taiwan's Terry Gou, Gou, Lai Ching, Lai, Steve Jobs, Foxconn, Democratic Progressive Party's, reverentially, Xi Jinping, Ben Blanchard, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Apple, Forbes, Global Times, Taiwan, Democratic Progressive, DPP, Taiwan People's Party, Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, Chicago, Atari, Dell, Sony Corp, Nintendo Co, Microsoft Corp, Communists, Communist Party's, Thomson Locations: Taoyuan, Taiwan, Rights TAIPEI, China, Foxconn, Beijing, Kuomintang, People's Republic of China

☆ Sony’s PlayStation Access controller offers a new social lifeline for gamers with disabilities
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Sony Interactive Entertainment is the maker of the wildly popular PlayStation consoles and a lineup of fan-favorite PlayStation games. Paul Amadeus Lane, an accessibility consultant working with Sony Interactive Entertainment, is pictured here with the Access controller, a Sony device specifically designed for gamers with disabilities. After years of tinkering and consulting with gamers who have disabilities like Lane, Sony Interactive Entertainment unveiled a first look at its Access controller for gamers with disabilities earlier this month. Gamers get a first look at Sony's Access controller, a highly-customizable device designed specifically for people with disabilities, at an event in San Mateo in September. “The industry needs to understand that the Xbox controller, the PlayStation controller, while they’re great and while they’re very beneficial, they cannot help everyone,” he said.

Persons: CNN — Grant Stoner, ” Stoner, I’ve, Stoner, Grant Stoner, Paul Amadeus Lane, quadriplegic, Lane, ” Lane, Alvin Daniel, ” Daniel, Daniel, “, ”, he’s, there’s Organizations: CNN, Super Nintendo, “, Pittsburgh, Sony, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Gamers, Sony’s PlayStation, Gran Turismo Locations: San Mateo

☆ Microsoft gaming chief Phil Spencer says Starfield is seeing 'huge demand'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, appears at the Political Opening of the Gamescom conference in Cologne, Germany, on Aug. 23, 2023. Microsoft is seeing "huge demand" for its new Starfield video game, Phil Spencer, the software company's CEO of gaming, said Wednesday. Microsoft picked up the game through its $8.1 billion acquisition of game publisher ZeniMax, the parent of Bethesda. Spencer said Starfield is the most wish-listed game the company has had on the Steam game store. Spencer said tens of millions of Game Pass subscribers were getting a chance to play Starfield on Wednesday.

Persons: Phil Spencer, Spencer, CNBC's Steve Kovach, ZeniMax, Jim Ryan, Ryan, We've, we've, Starfield Organizations: Microsoft Gaming, Microsoft, Microsoft's Bethesda Game Studios, PlayStation, Gaming, Activision Blizzard, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Activision, Sony, Nintendo, Markets Authority, Ubisoft Locations: Cologne, Germany, Microsoft's, Bethesda, San Francisco

Terry Gou, Foxconn founder announces his bid for the Taiwan presidency during a press event in Taipei, Taiwan August 28, 2023. Before he announced his bid to run as an independent on Monday, Gou had sought the KMT ticket for the presidency but failed. But his direct language, along with his business acumen, has drawn crowds in pseudo-campaign events across Taiwan that Gou held in the run-up to his announcement. He showed me how to use the touch screen on the spot," Gou said in 2011 about his relationship with Jobs. Gou told Trump he wanted to be a peacemaker between Taiwan, China and the U.S. as Taiwan's president.

Persons: Terry Gou, Ann Wang, Taiwan's Terry Gou, Democratic Progressive Party's, Gou, Sung Wen, APPLE Gou, Foxconn, Steve Jobs, Jobs, reverentially, Xi Jinping, Donald Trump, Trump, Ben Blanchard, Yimou Lee, Sarah Wu, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Apple Inc, Foxconn, Democratic Progressive, DPP, Kuomintang, KMT, Taiwan People's Party, National University's Taiwan Studies, APPLE, Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, Chicago, Atari, Dell, Apple, Sony Corp, Nintendo Co, Microsoft Corp, Communists, Communist Party's, Thomson Locations: Taiwan, Taipei, Rights TAIPEI, China, Beijing, Shanxi, Guangdong, People's Republic of China

Still, any outstanding regulatory hurdle makes it more likely that the agreement between Microsoft and Activision will expire on July 18 without the deal having been completed. The FTC's court filing about the appeal gave no details, which will go before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on the West Coast. The FTC may request a stay from the appeals court stopping the deal from closing. When U.S. antitrust agencies lose merger challenges in court, appeals are rare. The agency settled with the companies before the appeals court made a decision.

Persons: We’re, Brad Smith, Jacqueline Scott Corley, Corley, Diane Bartz, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, Activision, Microsoft's, Ninth Circuit, FTC, Biden, Markets Authority, Japan's Nintendo, Foods, Oats, Thomson Locations: West Coast, San Francisco

☆ The biggest takeaways from Microsoft's courtroom showdown with the FTC over Activision Blizzard
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +21 min

The impulse to expand Microsoft's gaming business on mobile devices at least in part inspired the Activision acquisition. The impulse to expand Microsoft's gaming business on mobile devices at least in part inspired the Activision acquisition. Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, wasn't happy with a Microsoft-generated list of Activision Blizzard games that would remain accessible on the PlayStation after the acquisition closes. Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, wasn't happy with a Microsoft-generated list of Activision Blizzard games that would remain accessible on the PlayStation after the acquisition closes. Activision Blizzard and Microsoft have agreed to terminate the deal if it's not done by July 18.

Persons: Satya Nadella, Phil Spencer, Spencer, James Weingarten, Weingarten, Jim Ryan, Sony, Ryan, Amy Hood, Bobby Kotick, Sarah Bond, Kotick, Amazon Weingarten, Bond, Tim Stuart, Nadella, Bernstein, Mark Moerdler, Hood, Stuart, it's, Jacqueline Scott Corley, she'll Organizations: Northern, Northern District of, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Sony, PlayStation, Mobile, Activision, Xbox, Zynga, Sega Sammy, Nintendo, Enix, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Management, Sony Group, Amazon, Microsoft's Xbox, Bernstein Research, Symantec, Sony PlayStation Locations: U.S, Northern District, Northern District of California, San Francisco, cybersecurity, United Kingdom, FarmVille, Asia, Japan, Tokyo

☆ Microsoft CEO Nadella says he has 'no love' for exclusive deals between game companies and consoles
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella arrives to court in San Francisco on June 28, 2023. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said Wednesday that he would like to eliminate exclusive arrangements between video games and popular gaming consoles. Microsoft employs the strategy as well for its Xbox, though Nadella said his company is a "low share player in the console market." Regarding exclusive deals, Nadella said "I have no love for that world." The FTC is worried that the tie-up could allow Microsoft to withhold popular games in Activision's library from other consoles or degrade service for those games elsewhere.

Persons: Satya Nadella, Nadella, Sony hasn't, Jim Ryan, he's Organizations: Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, Federal Trade, Nintendo, Sony, FTC, Activision, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Linux Locations: San Francisco, California

☆ Sony eyes finance unit listing, doubles down on entertainment
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Sam Nussey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Sony said it is considering a time frame of two to three years to spin off Sony Financial Group - whose operations include life insurance and banking - with an eye to listing the business and retaining a stake of slightly under 20%. The conglomerate is pursuing synergies between its business lines, which include video games, music and movies. A partial spin-off of Sony Financial, which the group said was made possible by changes in tax rules, would allow the newly listed business to retain Sony branding. The finance business reported a 5% fall in revenue to 1.45 trillion yen ($10.74 billion) in the year ended March. Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida said he recently watched the movie in Tokyo and used to play "Super Mario" too.

☆ Nintendo expects to sell 15 mln Switch consoles this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, May 9 (Reuters) - Japan's Nintendo Co Ltd (7974.T) on Tuesday said it expects to sell 15 million Switch game consoles in the financial year to end-March 2024, compared with 17.97 million the previous year. The Kyoto-based gaming firm posted operating profit of 504.38 billion yen ($3.73 billion) in the year ended on March 31, beating estimates, compared with profit of 592.76 billion yen a year earlier. Nintendo is facing slowing demand for its aging Switch console in its seventh year on the market, even as supply chain snarls have eased and the company bolsters its games lineup. On Friday Nintendo launches "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom", one of the most widely anticipated games of the year. Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

"Twitter Blue is a mess. Within the next 48 hours, all but 110 of the most-followed Twitter accounts suddenly had verification through Twitter Blue, indicating Twitter likely gifted the check marks, independent researcher Travis Brown told Reuters. GRADUAL PULLBACKSince the initial rollout of the Twitter Blue service in November, imposter tweets have spread harmful misinformation. Imposter Twitter accounts also tarnished the online reputations of Lockheed Martin Corp(LMT.N) and Nintendo Co Ltd(7974.T). "The volume of imposter accounts seems to depend on several things -- Is the client doing a high profile event that week?

The Japanese company said it expects operating profit in the year to March 31 to fall 3.2% to 1.17 trillion yen ($8.65 billion), lower than an analysts' average estimate of a 1.275 trillion yen profit, according to Refinitiv data. For this business year, the company forecast profit at its gaming and network unit to rise by 8% to 270 billion yen. Software sales ought to have grown in tandem with hardware," Yasuda said. Sony also predicted that image sensor operating profit will dip by 5.8% to 200 billion yen. The firm said overall operating profit for the three months that ended March 31 fell 7.3% to 128.5 billion yen, with full year profit nudging up to a record 1.21 trillion yen.

TOKYO, March 28 (Reuters) - The Japanese construction company targeted for takeover by the family office linked to Nintendo Co's (7974.T) founder is pushing back against the fund and has asked the government to investigate alleged breaches of foreign ownership rules. Toyo Construction Co (1890.T), the marine construction company now 27% owned by Yamauchi-No.10 Family Office (YFO), made the request to the government this month, according to a letter seen by Reuters. YFO has amassed most of its 27% stake through three related investment companies registered in the Cayman Islands, each of them with less than 10%. It said the three investment vehicles were not closely related as defined by law in terms of the capital structure and that all three had different directors. "In both the acquisition of Toyo Construction shares and the formulation of the buyout proposal, we have been in close consultation with regulators throughout.

☆ How Nintendo Competes Differently Than Sony and Microsoft
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Why Barnes & Noble Is Copying Local Bookstores It Once Threatened Barnes & Noble grew into a bookselling powerhouse thanks in part to the rapid expansion of its cookie-cutter retail locations. After years of struggling against e-commerce, it’s adopted a local strategy, empowering individual stores to decide on inventory and displays. Photo illustration: Ryan Trefes

☆ Microsoft offers EU remedies seeking OK on Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) has offered remedies in an attempt to gain EU antitrust approval for its $69 billion acquisition of Activision (ATVI.O), a European Commission filing showed on Friday. The EU competition enforcer, which did not provide details in line with its policy, will now seek feedback from rivals and customers before making its decision by May 22. Microsoft President Brad Smith has said the U.S. software company was prepared to offer rivals licensing deals to ease competition concerns but not to selling Activision's lucrative "Call of Duty" franchise. The company has in recent weeks signed agreements with three companies to bring "Call of Duty" to their platforms. "We are now backing up that promise with binding commitments to the European Commission, which will ensure that this deal benefits gamers into the future."

☆ Microsoft Signs Third ‘Call of Duty’ Deal as It Seeks Approval to Buy Activision Blizzard
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Kim Mackrael | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

An image released by Activision Blizzard shows a scene from ‘Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.’BRUSSELS— Microsoft Corp. President Brad Smith said the company reached a deal with cloud gaming company Boosteroid on distributing “Call of Duty” videogames and expects more agreements to follow as the software giant pushes to convince regulators to approve its planned $75 billion acquisition of the videogame franchise’s owner, Activision Blizzard Inc.Microsoft said Boosteroid is the largest independent cloud-streaming company, with about four million users globally, including in the European Union, the U.K. and the U.S. The 10-year agreement would allow its customers to stream Activision games including ‘‘Call of Duty” if the acquisition goes through, Microsoft said. It is the third such pact Microsoft has signed. It previously reached similar deals with console maker Nintendo Co. and chip maker Nvidia Corp.

But its tussle with the $620 million Toyo, Japan's third-largest marine construction firm in which it holds 27%, has been anything but whimsical. When asked for comment, Toyo Construction said it intended to set up a committee to consider the takeover proposal. It said it repeatedly requested more information to help it evaluate the offer but the Yamauchi office had not responded. The Yamauchi family office announced its all-cash offer to take Toyo private in May last year, a 30% premium to an earlier bid by Toyo's then largest shareholder. The board supported the lower offer, which later lapsed and the Yamauchi family office says it spent many months trying to engage with the board.

TOKYO, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T), the world's biggest automaker, said on Wednesday it would accept a union demand for the biggest base salary increase in 20 years and a rise in bonus payments, as Japan steps up calls for businesses to hike pay. As one of Japan's biggest employers, Toyota has long served as a bellwether of the spring labour talks, which are in full swing at major companies. The All Toyota Workers' Union is set to hold a media briefing later on Wednesday. "We will boost consumption and expand domestic demand by promoting efforts toward structural wage increases," Kishida said at a lower house budget committee session on Wednesday. Video game maker Nintendo Co Ltd (7974.T) said earlier this month that it planned to lift workers' base pay by 10%, despite trimming its full-year profit forecast.

☆ Explainer: How Microsoft is addressing antitrust concerns over Activision deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WHAT IS THE ACTIVISION DEAL? The UK competition agency CMA has suggested divesting Call of Duty to address its concerns while the European Commission has warned Microsoft about the possible anti-competitive impact of the deal. A group of 10 gamers in the United States has filed a private consumer antitrust lawsuit over the deal. WHAT ARE THE NINTENDO AND NVIDIA LICENSING DEALS? Both companies have signed 10-year licensing deals that will bring Call of Duty to their gaming platforms but these are conditional on the Activision deal being approved.

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