Page 29 - bon-dia-aruba-20200508

A29
business Friday 8 May 2020

In this Jan. 23, 2020, photo, a Nintendo sign is seen at the
company's official store in the Shibuya district of Tokyo, Thursday,
Jan. 23, 2020.
Associated Press
Nintendo marks profit

jump as people stay

home amid pandemic In this Feb. 22, 2018, file photo Airbnb co-founder and CEO
Brian Chesky speaks during an event in San Francisco. In a
world where social distancing has become a part of life and
By YURI KAGEYAMA "As a result of these fac- people are staying home in hopes of avoiding the coronavirus,
AP Business Writer tors, we may not be able companies that have built their business on the sharing economy
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese to proceed with the re- are struggling. Associated Press
video-game maker Ninten- lease of Nintendo products
in annual profit, as people planned. This is also true for Social distancing upends
do Co. scored a 33% jump and the start of services as

stuck at home turn to play- other software publishers,
ing games. Kyoto-based so it may not be possible businesses dependent on
Nintendo, which did not to provide game content
break down quarterly num- on Nintendo platforms as sharing
bers, said Thursday its sales planned," it said.
for the fiscal year through Nintendo projected a 23% By CATHY BUSSEWITZ edge of homelessness,"
March rose 9% from the fall in profit for the fiscal AP Business Writer said Jerome Gage, 28, who
year before to 1.3 trillion year through March 2021 NEW YORK (AP) — In a drives for Uber's rival Lyft
yen ($12 billion). Nintendo, at 200 billion yen ($1.9 bil- world where the coronavi- in Los Angeles. "We have
behind the Pokemon and lion). rus pandemic has turned to work or we don't eat."
Super Mario franchises, re- The company said it will social distancing into a Gage, who as a contract
ported a profit of 258.68 bil- continue to push the Nin- new way of life, compa- worker does not have paid
lion yen ($2.4 billion) for the tendo Switch handheld nies whose business models sick leave or health insur-
fiscal year, up from 194 bil- machine and Nintendo bank on people's willing- ance, has seen his income
lion yen a year earlier. Switch Lite hardware. ness to share their personal plummet as the number of
Nintendo said so far it had Planned software releases space are now struggling. rides he provided fell about
escaped major damage for the Switch include "Xe- San Francisco-based Uber 75%. He got one disposable
from the virus outbreak. noblade Definitive Edition," said Wednesday it's cutting mask and a few small bot-
Consumers unable to visit "Clubhouse Games: 51 3,700 full-time workers, or tles of sanitizer from Lyft, but
stores due to shutdowns Worldwide Classics" and about 14% of its workforce, said it's not enough to keep
have instead turned to on- more Pokemon offerings. as people fearful of infec- him safe. Lyft announced
line purchases. Nintendo said it has sold tion either stay indoors or last month it would lay off
Video gaming is a popular nearly a combined 55.7 try to limit contact with oth- 982 people, or 17% of its
stay-at-home activity, and million Nintendo Switch ers to minimize risk when workforce in the face of
Nintendo's new "Animal and Switch Lite machines. they do venture out. sinking ridership. The San
Crossing: New Horizons" has It aims to sell another 19 The layoffs and related Francisco company ex-
proven to be a hit, selling million Switch machines costs like severance will pects to spend $28 million
13.4 million units in the first in the fiscal year through cost about $20 million for to $36 million on expenses
six weeks since going on March 2021. Uber, which had already related to employee sev-
sale. Nintendo said Nintendo imposed a hiring freeze. erance and benefit costs.
But the company ex- Switch and Switch Lite ma- The company has offered Ride-hailing companies
pressed concern about the chine sales for the fiscal up to 14 days of financial are facing pushback from
future and over potential year ended March 2020 assistance to drivers and drivers who want to be
disruptions to production of rose 24% from the previous delivery workers who were classified as employees in-
devices and software. De- year to 21 million machines, diagnosed with the CO- stead of independent con-
pending on how the virus exceeding its forecast. VID-19 disease, or placed tractors, which some say
spreads, product deliveries Just under a quarter of the in quarantine. Those ride- would speed the process
might be hindered, lead- company's overall sales hailing drivers still on the of getting unemployment
ing to suspension of even were in Japan. Of the re- road are trying to avoid benefits. California sued
online purchases, it said. maining 77%, 43% came infection and patch to- Uber and Lyft on Tuesday,
Game development could from North and South gether enough fares to put alleging they misclassified
suffer if designers have to America and 25% from Eu- dinner on the table even as their drivers as indepen-
work from home for a long rope, according to Ninten- ridership plummets. "A lot of dent contractors under the
time, it said in a statement. do. q us are living on the razor's state's new labor law. q