In an exclusive interview with SmartHouse the Managing Director of Nintendo Australia has dismissed claims made by a Sony executive that the Nintendo Wii is “primarily purchased by women and teenagers because it is cheap and then dumped after only a few games”.
She has also said that Nintendo Australia is witnessing record sales and that a recent “Mothers Day” promotion had been huge for sales of their new Nintendo DSi handheld.
Lappin said that Nintendo’s success in the Australian market had come from carving out the family market as opposed to the avid gamers that Sony with their PS3 and Microsoft with their Xbox 360 are chasing.
And if the numbers have anything to do with it Nintendo is way ahead with the latest GFK data showing that the Japanese gaming Company has 90% of the Australian handheld market up against the struggling Sony PSP and more than 60% of the console market with their highly popular Nintendo Wii.
Last week Nintendo reported a $A3.7 Billion dollar profit and a 9.9% lift in sales. Sony is expected to make a loss of over $4 Billion when they announce their results next week with Playstation adding more problems than opportunities for Sony.
Lappin said “What Nintendo has done, is focus on the family market in Australia, whereas Microsoft and Sony’s console offerings are still seen as being hard core gaming machines. During the past two weeks we have seen record sales of both Nintendo software and consoles. Our new DSi handheld is proving extremely popular with both kids and women and I reject any claims that the Wii is being purchased because it is cheap and then dropped after only a few games. If that was the case, why is it that we are we witnessing record sales of Nintendo Wii software in Australia”.
Lappin who rarely does media interviews, said that retailers and Nintendo were also witnessing record sales of Nintendo accessories. “Both the Nintendo Wii and DSi is driving attach sales of both Nintendo branded products and goods bought in by retailers. This is our retail partners”.
