Nintendo Ltd/ADR Announces Switch Online Is Launching in September

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Nintendo Switch Online - Nintendo Ltd/ADR Announces Switch Online Is Launching in September

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Just days after reporting quarterly earnings with profits up over 500% on Switch sales, Nintendo Ltd/ADR (OTCMKTS:NTDOY) has more good news for gamers and investors. The company announced that Nintendo Switch Online, the eagerly anticipated online gaming service for its Switch console, will launch in September.

Nintendo stock got a 1.5% bump on the news.

Nintendo Switch Online Goes Live in September

Nintendo’s Switch game console has performed spectacularly against rivals Playstation 4 from Sony Corp (ADR) (NYSE:SNE) and Xbox One from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). But Nintendo’s hybrid console lacks one key feature the others have: an online gaming service.

Owners of some Switch games, including Splatoon are able to compete against other players online, but there’s no comprehensive platform-wide offering like PlayStation Network or Xbox Live. Nintendo’s rivals are also able to offer features like subscription access to libraries of classic games through online services PlayStation Now and Xbox Game Pass.

That will change in September. Nintendo announced that Nintendo Switch Online will go live this fall. The company’s new paid service will provide a network for gamers to play together online. It also adds the ability to save game data online — something Switch owners have been requesting.

And it offers a library of classic Nintendo games, which expands the number of titles available for the console while appealing to the retro movement that spawned products like the Super NES Classic. At launch, the library will offer 20 NES titles, including Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda and Donkey Kong.

Nintendo Switch Online will have multiple pricing plans available at launch: $3.99 per month, $7.99 for three months, $19.99 for a yearly membership and $34.99 for a yearly family membership that works with up to eight accounts.

Non-members will still have access to Nintendo’s eShop for buying games, but the company is clearly steering Switch owners toward the new paid service.

2018 Shaping Up to Be a Killer Year 

2018 is already looking to be a stellar year for Nintendo as the company continues to recover from its near-disastrous Wii U misstep. Switch sales are still on fire, just over a year after launch.

In the company’s annual earnings report, it told investors that the Switch console had driven earnings to a 505% increase compared to 2016. In its first year of sales, the Switch outperformed the Wii U’s sales for five years and has been regularly outselling the Xbox One. 

There are big game titles on tap for the Switch this year, including the latest release Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. The company just launched its innovative Labo cardboard-building kits, which are expected to further boost Switch sales by offering a creative and educational experience that the PS4 and Xbox One can’t match. And the company has a new president taking over from an interim leader.

Nintendo Switch Online is the icing on the cake for 2018. Lack of a comprehensive online gaming strategy was the one key advantage that the competition had over Nintendo. Now the company will be heading into the holiday shopping season with a popular console, new games, Labo sets and the Nintendo Switch Online gaming service.

Investors see a stronger-than-ever product mix, plus Nintendo Switch Online will add recurring subscription revenue that’s outside of game and hardware launch cycles. It’s not surprising that Nintendo stock was up after the announcement.

Brad Moon has been writing for InvestorPlace.com since 2012. He also writes about stocks for Kiplinger and has been a senior contributor focusing on consumer technology for Forbes since 2015.

As of this writing, Brad Moon did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2018/05/nintendo-announces-switch-online-is-launching-in-september/.

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