Pokémon Go

The July 2016 release of the Pokémon Go mobile app by Niantic caused shares in Nintendo to double, due to investor misunderstanding that the software was the property of Nintendo. Later that month, Nintendo released a statement clarifying its relation with Niantic, Nintendo stated it owned 32% of Pokémon intellectual property owner The Pokémon Company, and though it would receive some licensing and other revenues from the game it expected the impact on Nintendo's total income to be limited. As a result of the statement, Nintendo's share price fell substantially, losing 17% in one day of trading. After a reduction in share price from the Pokémon Go peak, the company was still valued at over 100 times its net income, a price-earnings ratio greatly exceeding the average on the Nikkei 225. Analysts speaking to Bloomberg L.P. and the Financial Times both commented on the potential future value of Nintendo's IP if transferred to the mobile phone game business.