http://www.computerandvideogames.com/289446/wii-2-thq-nods-to-possible-nintendo-announcement/
THQ boss Brian Farrell has indicated that a Wii 2 announcement from Nintendo this year wouldn't be a great surprise to the publisher.
Speaking in a financial presentation at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference yesterday, the CEO said that THQ didn't expect new home console hardware "anytime soon from either Microsoft or Sony".
However, Farrell made a point of differentiating Nintendo from his forecast. He added: "It's difficult on Nintendo - we'll let them announce their new hardware."
Farrell was responding to a question from an investor on predicted console cycles. The shareholder said that new hardware announcements pushed up THQ's share price and "although it's great having great games, I'm here to make money on the stock".
Farrell countered: "And we're here for the same reason. To your point, it used to be that investors would play the console cycles - a new console would mean a period of hyper growth in the industry.
"Now that games costs have gone up so much, these cycles have gotten longer, so it's harder to understand how to play the console cycle. The other thing that's difficult for investors, but we're starting to get more visibility on it, the transition we're going through right now, is more of the packaged goods to the digital.
"And it's hard for people to understand: What does that really mean in terms of revenue profitability. Now we're seeing some of these business models emerge like free-to-play, hybrid, DLC as part of the console eco-system... People know get how that's going to work and they're going to make money from them."
He added: "We don't expect new hardware any time soon from either Microsoft or Sony. It's difficult on Nintendo - we'll let them announce their new hardware.
"What we like about now is we've put most of our capital behind the 360 and PS3 for the next couple of years and that's where we think the action's going to be. So between those two platforms on the core side and the uDraw for us on the causal side, that's how we think we're going to make money."
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Hmm, sounds like he knows something from the way he said it. Does THQ know something?
