Nintendo to Release New Wii After Net Income Plunges 66%

Nintendo Co., the world’s biggest maker of video-game consoles, will sell a new version of its best-selling Wii model next year after profit fell to a seven-year low on competition with Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp.

Net income slumped 66 percent to 77.6 billion yen ($946 million) in the year ended in March, the Kyoto-based company said today. The earnings, Nintendo’s forecast for a 42 percent jump in profit this fiscal year and predictions for operating profit and sales, all lagged behind analysts’ estimates.