The Nintendo Switch's current price may stay the same a little longer.
Nintendo recently assured the public it does not have plans to increase the price of its Nintendo Switch at this time despite the handheld console's higher manufacturing cost, per IGN.
The company previously reported in its Q1 financial report for the current fiscal year that Switch sales have declined by around 23% due to the global semiconductor shortage affecting the global tech industry, per VGN247.
Nintendo Potential Price Increase Details
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa mentioned in an interview with Nikkei Asia that the company is not currently considering a price increase for two reasons.
Its first reason is to offer "unique entertainment" to a wide range of customers, and as such, it can't afford to price people out of the Nintendo Switch experience.
Its other reason is due to the number of Switch units sold so far. With the number of Switch units sold at 100 million, Nintendo feels it is important to maintain the momentum of its overall business. As such, increasing the Switch's price may have a negative effect on the status quo.
"Generally speaking, a weak yen makes domestic Switch sales less profitable," Furukawa said. He also mentioned that Nintendo is thinking about what it can do to offset the increasing manufacturing cost of the Switch without increasing its price at this point.
Furukawa pointed out that the weak yen may be seen as a benefit for Nintendo since most of its sales are from abroad. However, its overseas promotional and staff costs also go up, as well as shipping not only by air but also by sea.
The statements of Nintendo's president follow the approximately 23% Switch sale decline due to the effects of the global semiconductor shortage affecting the global tech industry since the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a result, the company is expecting a 29% drop in its annual net profit in its current fiscal year despite planning on selling 21 million Switch consoles in the current year.
The drop also means that Nintendo won't be releasing a new Switch model anytime during its current fiscal year as component shortages and sorting become the company's immediate goal, per Eurogamer.
Nintendo's Solutions To Get More Switch Consoles Sold
A VGN247 article discussing Nikkei Asia's interview with Furukawa revealed that the company would continue to sell three Nintendo Switch models: the standard model, the Switch Lite with a reduced price, size, and features, and its OLED model.
Interestingly, the OLED Nintendo Switch model was found to be the least profitable Switch, per Furukawa.
"We'll work out the best strategy as we go along," Furukawa says. "We're doing our best to procure high-quality products at an appropriate price with an eye toward the next few years."
Despite the drop in Switch sales, Nintendo's president also explains that the company may still be able to reach its goal for the current fiscal year through its software lineup for 2022, which includes Splatoon 3 and Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
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