Nintendo returns to profit on Switch

TOKYO: Nintendo said Wednesday it swung back to profit in the three months to June as the Switch console made more inroads into the global game market.

The Kyoto-based company struggled in the April-June quarter last year when it faced a stronger yen and lacklustre sales, particularly of its Wii U game consoles. Nintendo launched Switch in March with a price tag of $300 and had sold 2.7 million units by the end of the month. The gadget is seen as a new pillar for the company´s earnings.

During the April-June period, the company carried out successive launches of headline game titles for Switch, such as "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe" and "ARMS".

Nintendo said sales of Switch hardware in April-June totalled 1.97 million units while software reached 8.14 million during the quarter. The company said quarterly net profit reached 21.26 billion yen ($190 million), flipping from a net loss of 24.53 billion yen in the same period last year.

Nintendo plans to ship 10 million consoles in the fiscal year to March 2018. Capable at home and on the go, Switch blends Nintendo´s console and handheld device business with its fledgling mobile gaming strategy, which got a big brand win after Pokemon Go´s success in the summer of 2016.