If you're holding out on a Wii U because you're hoping for a price drop, you might want to reassess the strategy.
Nintendo announced today that it has no plans to slash the price of its new console any time soon.
Despite the rocky post-launch sales of the Wii U, company president Satoru Iwata told investors that he wants to be "absolutely clear:" a price cut wouldn't make any sense at this point, especially considering that Nintendo already sells the system at a loss.
Wii U sales over the last three months have been weaker than initially expected, prompting some to speculate that Nintendo would need to reduce its price to stay competitive, much like it had to do with its 3DS handheld system. Iwata insisted that Nintendo has learned from that mistake.
"We are putting our lessons from Nintendo 3DS to good use, as I have already publicly stated," said Iwata. "However, given that it has now become clear that we have not yet fully communicated the value of our product, we will try to do so before the software line-up is enhanced and at the same time work to enrich the software line-up which could make consumers understand the appeal of the Wii U."
As Iwata hinted at, poor communication hasn't been the only problem for the console, though there have been numerous instances of consumer confusion over the difference between the Wii and the Wii U. A dry software line-up doesn't help make things any easier, since the lack of fresh games leaves console owners with little to use their system for.
"We delivered Wii U to those consumers who we thought would be the first to buy it, but information has not been successfully passed on to those consumers who we think will be the next people to buy it," he said.
"People always try to compare the sales of Wii U with that of Wii, but the current situation is requiring us to focus upon how to re-energize Wii U sales irrespective of any comparisons with the previous platforms."
The company has sold a little more than 3 million consoles since launch, and while it's unlikely the system will perform as well as the Wii, there's still a chance for Nintendo to right the Wii U ship. Its recent game announcements suggest Nintendo does recognize it's stumbling out of the gates, and will need to act in a significant way to spark some momentum.
