Last year was both the twentieth anniversary of the Pokemon franchise and arguably its biggest year since Pokemon fever first hit the US in 1999. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that The Pokemon Company, which manages the franchise on behalf of Nintendo and the franchise’s original developer Game Freak, made a ton of money last year.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The Pokemon Company recently released its annual earnings report, with a reported net profit (that’s the amount of money made after expenses) of $143 million. That’s about twenty-six times more money than the Pokemon Company made in 2015.
There were two big reasons for the major surge in Pokemon profits. The first was the international phenomenon Pokemon Go, which pushed Pokemon back into the pop culture spotlight. Although Pokemon Go couldn’t retain its massive initial userbase, millions of people either discovered Pokemon for the first time or remembered how much they loved the games when they were younger.
The Pokemon Company followed up on that success with the release of Pokemon Sun and Moon, which became one of the best selling games of 2016, even though it was released in November.
Although 2017 probably won’t be as big of a year for The Pokemon Company, there’s still plenty to be excited about. The Pokemon Company is pushing mobile games hard, with Magikarp Jump and the just announced PokeLand. There’s also a new Pokemon movie that could be bringing back several fan favorites and big summer plans for Pokemon Go. Oh, and there’s rumors of possible Pokemon tie-ins with the Nintendo Switch.
We’re not sure what’s next for Pokemon, but we’re sure it’ll be exciting, fun…and will probably make lots of money for the Pokemon Company.
More Pokemon: Pokemon Go Earns A Ton of Money From Sponsorships / Pokemon Sun and Moon’s Next Global Mission Sounds a Bit Fishy / Japanese Retailer Hints That Pokken Tournament Is Coming to Nintendo Switch / Legendary Pokemon and More Confirmed for Pokemon Go This Summer
