The Pokemon Company generated $3.3 billion in retail revenue in 2016
In 2015, The Pokemon Company generated $2.1 billion in retail revenue. That total saw a big rise in 2016, jumping to $3.3 billion. It was a $1.2 billion increase, causing Pokemon to move up ten spots comparatively to 2015 numbers.
Pokemon GO’s launch last year was naturally a catalyst, as were Pokemon Sun and Pokemon Moon. The series also had its first Super Bowl commercial ever which was no doubt seen by millions of people.
License! Global writes in a new report:
“Pokemon enjoyed an incredibly strong year at retail in 2016, which marked the brand’s 20th anniversary. The milestone, which recognized the first introduction of Pokemon video games 20 years ago, catapulted the perennially popular brand into the global spotlight and kicked off with the first-ever Pokemon Super Bowl commercial. The company also introduced the mobile game “Pokemon Go,” which became a global phenomenon and was downloaded 650 million times. Pokemon followed this success with “Pokemon Sun” and “Poeémon Moon” for the Nintendo 3DS, which became the third best-selling Nintendo 3DS titles of all time, adding to the 280 million Pokemon video games already sold.”