Nintendo to enter mobile games market
Iconic characters can be used in future mobile games
Nintendo has announced a partnership with mobile publisher DeNA that will make every one of the company's famous IPs available for mobile development.
The partnership will extend Nintendo's reach into the vast market of smart device users worldwide. There will be no ports of existing Nintendo games, according to information released today, but all Nintendo IP will be eligible for development and exploration by the alliance. That includes the iconic characters that the company has guarded for so long.
No details were provided on how the partnership will affect DeNa, although the mobile company did say they will work with Nintendo to combine its microtransaction focus with the game publisher's usual way of doing business.
Nintendo and DeNA are planning an online membership service that will span Nintendo consoles, PC and smart devices. That will launch in the autumn this year.
The financial aspect of the deal is a dual stock purchase, with each company buying ¥22 billion ($181 million) of the other's treasury shares. That's equivalent to 10 per cent of DeNA's stock, and 1.24 per cent of Nintendo. The payments will complete on April 2, 2015.
Shares of Nintendo were up 26% after the announcement.
[Via GI]

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