Fortune Magazine cover story: How Wii won

[tnw]

Just got the lastest issue of fortune, and it's on the cover.

Edit: cover scan + summary (thanks jey_16!)

Key Points:

- Wii is really popular and is sold out a lot (even at NOA Company store)

- Wii Remote is cheap to make
Accelerometer: $2.50
Basic Memory Chip: $0.25
Audio Amplifier: $0.50
Data Converter: $0.50
Rumble Pack: $2.50
Bluetooth Chip: $2.00
Audio Translator: $2.00
Plastic Casing: Unknown
Wrist Strap: Unkown

- $50 profit per Wii

- $5 Million to develop Wii game vs $20 Million for PS3 game

-Ubisoft says Nintendo is best console maker to work with

- EA says Nintendo is a pioneer

- Wii's success has done little to convince Microsoft execs that they'rs on the wrong course (Peter Moore: "I love the experience, the price point and Nintendo content of the Wii, but Microsoft provides experiences that Nintendo cannot provide")

- CEO of SCE America says give credit to Nintendo but points out that Sony have a innovative controller as well, technology doesnt go backwards and the Wii is a re purposed gamecube

- Sony views the world through the eyes of an engineer while Nintendo takes its cues from the outside world (eg. Pikmin from Miyamoto's garden)

FUTURE
- Nintendo could stick with the current tech for a few years and then introduce a Wii 2.0 with PS3 tech but cheap

- cut $50 of Wii price to compete with future price cuts for MS and Sony

- relationship between Mac/PC - iTune - iPod could be like Wii - DS

- needs more stock, did not expect Wii to be so popular....currently making 1M a month but want 1.5M - 2M but its difficult

QUOTES
We were losing to the TV remote. So we thought what kind of controller can we create that wont make people afraid to touch it? - Miyamoto

We are not competing against Sony or Microsoft. We are battling the indifference of people who have no interest in video games - Iwata

My name is Reggie. I'm about kickin' ass, I'm about takin' names, and we're about makin' games" - you know who

 

[Thoren]

More Mumbo Jumbo about how the Wii sells alot of units and is teh awesome from people who's gaming experience doesn't go past "oh ya I like Mario"

 

[The Take Out Bandit]

Ay yi yi. . .

 

[dr3upmushroom]

Does it use Wii as a pun and have bunch of fanboys on the cover?

 

[Wario64]

Well the console war is over. Mods can close this forum until the next gen war begins.

 

[davepoobond]

how stupid would they look if wii lost

 

[Thoren]

Well the console war is over. Mods can close this forum until the next gen war begins.

:lol time to put GAF into hibernation

 

[tnw]

There's actaully a cool one page spread that looks at the guts of the wiimote, telling what each part does and how much it costs (not very much).

Worst line in the article

"In short, Iwata has made Nintendo as efficient as a bullet train and as stingy as a bento box'

What's stingy about a bento box?

 

[beanoboy7]

sweet

 

[tribal24]

damn that fast>.> *sigh*

 

[lexi]

I'm glad Fortune is doing what no other print media dares to do.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

cover story kinda

 

[Evlar]

There's actaully a cool one page spread that looks at the guts of the wiimote, telling what each part does and how much it costs (not very much).

Worst line in the article

"In short, Iwata has made Nintendo as efficient as a bullet train and as stingy as a bento box'

What's stingy about a bento box?

This is America, dude. If it's not the size of your head it's not a meal.

 

[Deku]

I don't subscribe to Fortune, but I certainly would like to see what they have to say. The Economist had a very well written article last year prior to Wii's launch laying out the situation and was pretty balanced and right about its assessment with regards to Nintendo's strong position in the market.

 

[RiskyChris]

There's actaully a cool one page spread that looks at the guts of the wiimote, telling what each part does and how much it costs (not very much).

Worst line in the article

"In short, Iwata has made Nintendo as efficient as a bullet train and as stingy as a bento box'

What's stingy about a bento box?

Nintendo has always been stingy :lol

 

[Fowler]

I guess different regions have different covers. Mine has a guy holding up a wiimote as the cover.

 

[BrodiemanTTR]

Nintendo has truly done a total 180 in terms of mindshare. Every mainstream media outlet is totally on the Wii's nuts.

 

[Kevtones]

The Wii has always been winning. It has always existed. The Wii is God and God is Wii.

 

[Pureauthor]

This is America, dude. If it's not the size of your head it's not a meal.

When my family visited America, my dad and my mum ordered a steak, and then told the waiter to cut it in two and serve half to each of them.

It was still too much for them.

 

[HyperionX]

Too bad it's not Businessweek, and their infamous cover curse.

 

[Grayman]

Fortune magazine sounds like a junior member

 

[BrodiemanTTR]

When my family visited America, my dad and my mum ordered a steak, and then told the waiter to cut it in two and serve half to each of them.

It was still too much for them.

WTF. Where were you visiting from, Lilliput?

 

[john tv]

There's actaully a cool one page spread that looks at the guts of the wiimote, telling what each part does and how much it costs (not very much).

Worst line in the article

"In short, Iwata has made Nintendo as efficient as a bullet train and as stingy as a bento box'

What's stingy about a bento box?

Maybe it's sting-ee, like in Last Alert.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Too bad it's not Businessweek, and their infamous cover curse.

PS3 ever on that cover?

 

[davepoobond]

Nintendo has truly done a total 180 in terms of mindshare. Every mainstream media outlet is totally on the Wii's nuts.

now ya gotta think, does society influence media or does media influence society?

 

[hauton]

More Mumbo Jumbo about how the Wii sells alot of units and is teh awesome from people who's gaming experience doesn't go past "oh ya I like Mario"

Hopefully not. Because the Wii is pretty genius.

-Charge the hardware @ profit
-Charge the software @ huge profit (for their budget)
-Allow a standard of games that are both extremely easy and extremely cheap to develop to enlist publishers and "B-team" developer support
-Rely on hardcore faithful while dipping into casual market

It prints money.

 

[tnw]

cover story kinda

Well I'll be. It's the cover story in the Asian version then. June 11, 2007 issue if you want to search for it

Bento boxes can be bigger than your head. They double and triple stack them, you know.

I also don't think a bullet train is very efficient, energy wise. Doesn't a car top out it's efficiency at 60 mph?

 

[BrodiemanTTR]

Well I'll be. It's the cover story in the Asian version then.

Makes more sense now.

 

[Pureauthor]

WTF. Where were you visiting from, Lilliput?

Singapore. And we like our food here, too.

 

[Hagi23]

won what?

 

[Y2Kev]

WTF, how are bento boxes stingy? You get like sushi, some form of meat, salad, rice, and vegetable tempura. At least where I order.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Well I'll be. It's the cover story in the Asian version then. June 11, 2007 issue if you want to search for it

You mean the cover is different for different markets?

 

[jey_16]

cover story kinda

its on the cover of the Australian edition.....i'm reading the article now

are you allowed to post scans of covers?

 

[Duke Togo]

Its over, shut it all down.

 

[TJ Spyke]

I think so, you just can't post scans of the inside (if it's English, you can provide scans of Japanese articles).

 

[nfreakct]

The Wii remote breakdown brings the estimated cost of the remote (minus plastic casing and strap) to $10.25 for the innards (and of course minus any R&D costs to develop the thing).

 

[Mudhoney]

*trolls*

*generalizes Wii early adopter demographic*


*smirks defiantly at the monitor*

 

[HyperionX]

PS3 ever on that cover?

Technically, any magazine cover story is considered a curse, since it signals the saturation of interest in a particular product and often means the high water mark has been reached. Businessweek is just a particularly infamous magazine with some truly awful predictions.

 

[tnw]

You mean the cover is different for different markets?

Oh yeah. Time and Newsweek consistantly have different covers. Can't ignore local issues and politics I doubt Americans would care about!

The article also has pictures of Miis for Iwata, Miyamoto, and Reggie

 

[titiklabingapat]

Hopefully, being on the cover of the asian edition means it will scare ths poop tube off of Japanese developer suits and we'll get a flood of announcments soon.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

See if you guys get redirected to different sections of
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/

 

[mj1108]

its on the cover of the Australian edition.....i'm reading the article now

are you allowed to post scans of covers?

I believe you can post covers (just the covers).

 

[ZeoVGM]

More Mumbo Jumbo about how the Wii sells alot of units and is teh awesome from people who's gaming experience doesn't go past "oh ya I like Mario"

Oh, the tears, they are a bitter.

Christ.

 

[cvxfreak]

There's actaully a cool one page spread that looks at the guts of the wiimote, telling what each part does and how much it costs (not very much).

Worst line in the article

"In short, Iwata has made Nintendo as efficient as a bullet train and as stingy as a bento box'

What's stingy about a bento box?

Japanese food isn't known for the generous portions.

 

[jey_16]

 

[norinrad21]

WTF, how are bento boxes stingy? You get like sushi, some form of meat, salad, rice, and vegetable tempura. At least where I order.

its still pretty tiny, but delicious.

 

[Orlics]

We get the Asian version, I'll check it out when my dad gets it at the office.

 

[Mudhoney]

More Mumbo Jumbo about how the Wii sells alot of units and is teh awesome from people who's gaming experience doesn't go past "oh ya I like Mario"

Considering the magazine's focus, the article is probably is about sales and how Nintendo is successful from a business point of view. I'm not sure how that's mumbo jumbo, or how it takes extensive knowledge of gaming to cover.

 

[MattXG]

Jump the gun much?

Image will be fun to post when Wii sales implode next year though...

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Jump the gun much?

Image will be fun to post when Wii sales implode next year though...

bookmarked? :lol