GameCube shipments to increase by 200,000

Nintendo of America has announced an increase in its holiday shipment forecasts for the GameCube. In the face of strong demand, the company will ship an additional 200,000 units of the console, upping its year-end shipment numbers from 1.1 million to 1.3 million units. Nintendo launched the GameCube console on November 18, with 700,000 units available. On launch day, the hardware, accessories, and game sales generated revenues of $98 million for the company.

On a related note, Nintendo announced on Wednesday that its profits for the first half of its current fiscal year rose 14 percent, partially due to lower parts prices for its Game Boy Advance handheld. For the half fiscal year ended September, Nintendo posted a new group profit of 34 billion yen (about $276 million), up from 30 billion yen.