6 of Nintendo's Innovations in Payments

July 15, 2016 10:11 AM

Pikachu plush toys are displayed for sale at the Pokemon Center Mega Tokyo store in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. Pokemon, a multi-media franchise by Nintendo Co., will mark its 20th anniversary on Feb. 27. Photographer: Yuriko Nakao/Bloomberg

Yuriko Nakao/Bloomberg

Nintendo is known for taking an experimental approach to making video games, and this same mindset carries over to how it handles money. The company's hardware, software and business strategies show a forward-thinking strategy for payment acceptance.

A gamer attempts to catch a character while playing the Nintendo Co. Pokemon Go game at Central Park in New York, U.S., on Wednesday, July 13, 2016. Pokemon Go's rapid adoption underscores Nintendo's potential to capture a larger share of the $57 billion mobile gaming market with its key franchises, fueling sales growth. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Pokemon Go

As partial owner of The Pokemon Co., Nintendo is reaping the rewards of the Pokemon Go craze while also demonstrating to retailers and banks a means of using mobile technology to drive traffic to their stores and branches. And reportedly, companies will be able to buy sponsorships within the app.

Nintendo's Wii U console, above, and touch-pad controller sit on display during an interview with Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of America Inc., in New York, U.S., on Friday, Sept. 14, 2012. Nintendos Wii U console, built with television and other features meant to appeal to Mom and Dad, will first attract their game-playing kids with exclusive titles, Fils-Aime said. Photographer: Jin Lee/Bloomberg

Jin Lee/Bloomberg

Contactless Cards

Nintendo's Wii U was the first major home gaming console with a built-in Near Field Communication reader. In 2014, it began using the reader to accept payments from Japan's contactless Suica fare cards.

Character figures from the Nintendo Co. Amiibo video game are displayed at the Nintendo Game Front showroom in Tokyo, Japan, on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2015. Nintendo halved its operating earnings forecast for this fiscal year to 20 billion yen ($170 million) and lowered its sales outlook by 7 percent on Jan. 29. Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg

Akio Kon/Bloomberg

NFC Training

The Wii U's NFC reader also interacts with a line of toys called "amiibo." Though this is not inherently a payments play, it trains a generation of gamers to understand NFC technology, reducing the hurdle to getting them to use contactless cards or mobile wallets in the future.

Attendees play a demo version of Pokemon X and Pokemon Y on the Nintendo 3DS at one of the kiosks in the outdoor event in New York on Friday, Oct. 11, 2013.The event celebrates the release of the two new games. Photographer: Louis Lanzano/ Bloomberg *** Local Caption *** Nintendo

Louis Lanzano/Bloomberg

Gamified Money

In addition to traditional currencies, Nintendo has a number of virtual currencies. Its handheld 3DS system senses when it's being moved, and it gives players virtual coins if they walk around with it all day. Its newest reward system provides a separate virtual currency for performing certain tasks in its mobile games.

A boy touches a mock-up Nintendo Co. 3DS LL handheld game console displayed at the Labi 1 Ikebukuro Mobile Dream building, operated by Yamada Denki Co., in Tokyo, Japan, on Saturday, July 28, 2012. Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg

Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg

Haggling

Rusty's Real Deal Baseball, a handheld game released in North America in 2014, takes a very odd approach to payments. Its 10 minigames are priced at $4 each and yes, this is real money but players that don't want to pay the full $40 price tag can haggle with the in-game shopkeeper to bring the total cost down to just $16.

Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo Co., right, and Isao Moriyasu, president and chief executive officer of DeNA Co., shake hands during a joint news conference in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, March 17, 2015. Nintendo dropped its resistance to using its characters on mobile devices as the maker of Mario and Zelda teams with DeNA to develop new games for smartphones and tablet computers. Photographer: Akio Kon/Bloomberg *** Local Caption *** Satoru Iwata; Isao Moriyasu

Akio Kon/Bloomberg

Mobile Mindset

Nintendo is working with the mobile gaming company DeNA to develop games for smartphones. Their apps will use the free-to-play smartphone pricing model, betting that its customers will pay it more money through optional low-value in-app purchases.