Nintendo’s Blue Ocean Strategy
Nintendo’s Blue Ocean Strategy has been a key factor in its success in the video game console market. The company has pursued “blue ocean” innovation, looking for open space to innovate apart from its competitors. Nintendo has cultivated a softer brand image based on long-running, family-friendly flagship characters such as Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon, and intuitive, easy-to-use devices that are more affordable than competitors. In each new hardware generation, Nintendo has rethought its device design, often deviating substantially from predecessor offerings.
The Nintendo Wii is a prime example of Nintendo’s Blue Ocean Strategy. The Wii redefined market boundaries and created the best-selling video-game console ever by targeting noncustomers. The Wii outsold Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox combined, until the market was disrupted by smartphones and tablets.
The Nintendo Switch is another example of Nintendo’s Blue Ocean Strategy. The Switch is the only console to outpace the Wii in sales, and by moving into adjacent markets, working with businesses in which it held a minority stake to release the wildly popular Pokémon Go and other mobile games. The Switch has been a home run, outselling Xbox One and PS4.
Nintendo’s consistency with values (family-friendly, accessible, and affordable) coupled with its riskier “blue ocean” approach to innovation may remain the right mix for the future. By creating the terms for its own game, Nintendo has been able to tap into latent demand and create organic growth by learning from noncustomers.
In conclusion, Nintendo’s Blue Ocean Strategy has allowed it to tap into new markets and redefine market boundaries. By cultivating a softer brand image, rethinking device design, and targeting noncustomers, Nintendo has been able to create the best-selling video-game consoles ever, the Wii and the Switch. Nintendo’s consistency with values and its riskier “blue ocean” approach to innovation may remain the right mix for the future.
[1] https://www.newswise.com/articles/nintendo-game-for-a-blue-ocean-strategy
[2] https://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/teaching-materials/nintendo-switch/
[3] https://www.ignitionframework.com/blue-ocean-strategy-nintendo/
[4] https://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/teaching-materials/nintendo-wii/
[5] https://blueoceanthinking.substack.com/p/nintendo-and-blue-ocean-strategy
[6] https://ivypanda.com/essays/nintendo-wii-blue-ocean-strategy/
| Nintendo Wii Commercials | ||
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| http://www.youtube.com/embed/Zlb5VJ2XV6A First Wii commercial | http://www.youtube.com/embed/s0maiFR0m-A Super Smash Bros. Brawl Commercial | http://www.youtube.com/embed/19xXFQ_aIfs Wii Commercial |
| http://www.youtube.com/embed/CxewK_JsLLw Super Mario Bros. For Wii Commercial | http://www.youtube.com/embed/-uJiNIT3uvM Wii Tennis Accident | http://www.youtube.com/embed/OKD6nOYWxHU Wii Game Accident |