Nintendo Co. has more than tripled its full-year loss forecast as the success of Apple Inc.'s popular devices has eroded demand for the company's 3DS handheld player.
The net loss in the year ending in March could come to ¥65 billion, compared with an earlier forecast of a ¥20 billion loss, the world's largest maker of video game machines said in a statement Friday. The forecast was far worse than the average loss of ¥29 billion projected by 18 analysts tracked by Bloomberg.
President Satoru Iwata, who cut 3DS prices by as much as 40 percent last year, said he expects full-year sales of 14 million units for the device that shows images in 3-D, down from an earlier forecast of 16 million. The creator of "Super Mario Bros." games is predicting its first annual loss in at least three decades because of the surging yen and a consumer preference for gaming on the iPhone and iPad that helped Apple more than double profit in the quarter.