@cleveland124

The 3DS is successful, it doesn't matter if it isn't as successful as the DS. That's like saying the PS3 was a failure because the PS2 did so much better. It's been out since 2011, it should be losing momentum in terms of hardware sales, 6.6 million isn't that bad at this point as there comes a point of market saturation. We all know that mobile devices shrunk the 3DS' market share but as a console it's sold a very healthy number.

When i say financially secure i'm referring to the debt to profit ratio, Sony as a company has not been doing well for years now and is massively in debt, but i can't deny that the Playstation division is doing very well. For example General Motors is a much larger company than Nintendo or Hyundai but it's certainly much less financially secure. The financial health of Sony as a whole has the potential to be a major drain on the Playstation brand going forward, as of now i'd certainly agree that the size of the company's operating budget and technological diversity is an asset but in terms of pure video game R&D i seriously doubt they invest as much as Nintendo does and they likely can't afford to instead having to leverage other R&D within the company to help the PS division (this is admittedly speculation).

You need to consider that the 2nd pillar of the PS division (PSP, Vita) hasn't ever done all that well. You also need to consider that traditionally the hardware doesn't generate as much profit as Nintendo's as it's produced with a larger overhead and sold at a much smaller profit margin, in fact iirc the PS3 was sold at a loss. And lastly Playstation makes the majority of their profit off royalties as they don't produce nearly as much software as Nintendo does meaning that again the profit margin is far less. Nintendo doesn't want to abandon hardware in part because it would mean they would have to pay royalties and as of now they still sell millions of copies of numerous games per year. Nintendo is also understood to develop software much more cost effectively.

Also in regards to software and IP in general Nintendo has the potential to make much more money than Sony as it's now developing for smart devices and is able to and focusing on leveraging IP in new ways such as merchandising, media, and theme parks. Playstation does not have the IP's to allow for this kind of revenue stream as related to video games.

I agree Nintendo needs to reverse some fortunes here but my point is that as a company they have a much more forgiving business model and the potential to generate far higher profits than their counterparts for the reasons listed above. Eventually the share holders aren't going to tolerate hardware failure after failure but as of now they've had one true failure in the companies lifespan, with even the Gamecube returning modest profits, and they've had the majority of huge success' in terms of consoles to their credit. Nintendo's business model has hardware as an essential component, if they gave hardware up they would be drastically reducing the profit potential of their company and that's not something shareholders are going to want to do so easily. It's not like they are hemorrhaging money nor have they ever, they've posted some relatively modest losses for a company of their size. It happens.

As for Xbox it's widely been speculated that it's long lost Microsoft money and hence theirs been persistnet rumors for years about them getting out of the console buisness. Now i don't think they will leave the market, as Xbox losing some money helps them create a larger and more diverse business as it relates to computing and software but Xbox as a brand is not doing very well and never has. It's merely staying afloat and that's largely due to being backed by one of the largest companies in the world.

None of the big 3 are really doing that poorly but my point stands in terms of the video game divisions of the companies, which Nintendo essentially wholly is, Nintendo has the most financially secure situation. They tend to generate profit and when they lose money in times of bust it's not that much, they have higher profit potential in boom times, and they don't have to be concerned with the financial health of other divisions within the company (PS) nor do the have to be concerned with being a deemed an unnecessary burden on the company as a whole (Xbox).

Sorry for being late to the party and for the wall of text but i felt a well written opinion such as yours deserved an honest rebuttal. I really do appreciate the well thought out and honest reply, even if we don't agree i respect your right to an opinion and feel it's been developed in good faith and intelligently. Kudos.