Nintendo Confirms Sub-$250 Wii Pricing

In a brief English-language press release following the company's financial results, Nintendo has reconfirmed several details regarding the forthcoming launch of its Wii next-console, including prospective pricing and overall unit predictions/sales growth. Coming off a successful year as the only major console/game manufacturer to regularly and explicitly make a profit, and with lifetime sales of Game Boy Advance at 75 million, and 16 million units already shipped for the DS/DS Lite, it's clear that Nintendo is continuing to target its goal of expanding the game market through alternate control systems, game styles, and concepts with gusto. Specifically, the Nintendo of America-released statement states: "Nintendo also confirmed that the price of the Wii system, which incorporates unique freehand control, will not exceed $250 in America, or 25,000 yen in Japan." This figure is obviously far cheaper than the $299/$399 launch pricing for Microsoft's Xbox 360 and $499/$599 for PlayStation 3. It's also specified: "The company plans to ship 6 million systems to retailers around the world between its launch in the fourth quarter of 2006 and the end of its fiscal year on March 31, 2007." Sony has announced a cumulative 6 million units by March 31, 2007 for PS3, and Microsoft, having a headstart, has not yet predicted forward that far for Xbox 360. Finally, it's also noted: "The company also said it expects to sell 17 million Wii games in the period. Exact launch dates, identification of the launch library of titles and details on the unique Virtual Console aspect of Wii will be announced soon."