Brazil's enormous taxes chase Nintendo out of the country
After this month, Nintendo will halt all direct sales in Brazil. According to UOL Jogos, the company's leaving the country due to the exorbitant taxes it has to pay to continue its operations. Bill van Zyll, the company's general manager in Latin America, said in a statement that "Brazil is an important market for Nintendo," but the company had to make this decision, as its "current distribution model [is] unsustainable in the country." Chances are, some unauthorized sources are already selling imported consoles and games in Brazil. But if you'd rather buy a 3DS or a Wii U from stores that get its supplies from Nintendo's local partner, Juegos de Video Latinoamérica, you may want to do so soon.
Brazil is known for imposing high tariffs on international companies in order to protect local ones, forcing corporations to pull out, like what HTC and Durham did in 2012. Another reason is to beef up local employment, because one way to avoid paying those taxes is to build factories in the country -- something Apple did in 2011, so it can continue selling iDevices. Nintendo probably thinks that's not a financially viable route, though Van Zyll swore the company will monitor the Brazilian market and evaluate how best to serve its fans.
