Hudson Expects 400% Profit Rise On Wii Titles

Officials from Japanese developer Hudson Soft have spoken of plans to increase the company’s profits by almost 400 percent within three years, by focusing on titles for the Wii. The company, now a subsidiary of Konami, is best known for support of the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 and ongoing franchises such as Bomberman, Bonk and Adventure Island. More recently, the company has seen its greatest success as the developer of Nintendo’s hugely popular Mario Party franchise. The company is now targeting an operating profit of ¥10 billion ($97m) by the financial year ended March 2011, according to comments attributed to president elect Michihiro Ishizuka by the Bloomberg financial news agency. The company is also planning to pay a dividend to shareholders for the first time in five years. Hudson will release eight titles for the Wii in 2008, to add to a current tally of ten titles for the format. The move comes after operating profits rose 53 percent to ¥2.7 billion ($26m), well above Hudson’s forecast of ¥2 billion ($19m). This was attributed primarily to stronger than expected sales on the Wii and Nintendo DS. “Two years from now will be the time when game-software developers' profits are expected to grow the most, after the winner and loser for consoles becomes clear," quoted Bloomberg of Ishizuka. “I will ensure earnings jump in the next three years by promoting licensing of our games and increasing spending on promotions.”