Hiku said:
All around the forum, I've often come across people usaing "Wii U is being sold at a profit now" as a 'be all end all' argument for why Wii U is doing well financially.
But I think they're forgetting a few important factors that are neccesary for the Wii U to be a profitable console for Nintendo.
(Btw, I've been unable to find a source for when they started selling them at a profit, so if anyone has a link, if you would be so kind and post it for me, it would be much appreciated.)
First of all, selling at a profit is a positive thing. Don't get my wrong. But the cost of each console's components is not the only cost Nintendo have to recuporate.
What about the years and and millions/billions invested in Research & Development for the Wii U? (I don't know the exact figure, but I read that Sony's R&D division was down billions because of the R&D for the PS4. Either way, it's a huge sum of money.)
The console is expected to make up for this investement as well. And then some, in order for the shareholders to be interested in developing the next console. There's also all the advertising, shipping, liscensing, and saleries for people still working with the Wii U, as well as making up for the money they lost when they were selling the console at a loss initially, etc.
So it comes down to how much the console is making. (Of course, they make money off of software sales as well, but I'm focusing only on the console right now since people use that as an argument for why a larger instal base isn't important as long as the console is sold at a profit.)
Do we know how much Nintendo makes on each Wii U sold? Do we know how much they invested in research and development for the Wii U?
For me, it's a rather bold statement to claim that it's all fine and dandy unless we know these things. It's certainly heading in a positive direction if it's selling at a profit. But when or if it reaches the point of making up for all the money they invested to get here, that is what really matters for Nintendo financially.
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