Nintendo is cooperating with three major Japanese online marketplaces, namely Mercari, Inc., LINE Yahoo Japan Corporation, and Rakuten Group, Inc. to help prevent fraudulent scalping of its products (including the highly-anticipated Nintendo Switch 2).
According to the announcement made by Nintendo on May 27, these platforms and their associated flea market webpages (namely Mercari, Yahoo! Auctions, Yahoo! Flea Market, and Rakuten Rakuma) will be taking down listings that violate their terms of use, penalizing offenders, and “establishing a collaborative system for sharing information.” Moreover, Yahoo Auctions has announced that it will be prohibiting Switch 2 listings entirely for the time being and even dealing out account suspensions.
With demand for the Switch 2 at an all-time high in Japan, scalpers will no doubt be trying to sell the console, as well as its games and accessories, at exorbitant prices. While those who possess authentic Nintendo products (including the Switch 2) can technically still charge crazy-high prices for them, the Nintendo-flea market service provider partnership was formed specifically to address the listing of fake items (including listings made based on pre-orders rather than physical possession of the product).
Yahoo! Shopping has already issued a warning to buyers and sellers that its online trading environment is expected to be chaotic when the Switch 2 becomes available on June 5, which is, according to Game*Spark, an “unprecedented” move for the platform. Potential buyers were warned to “stay calm” and keep a close eye on market trends and their purchases. Those who engage in fraudulent activities, such as posting products on Yahoo! Shopping without securing inventory or placing orders on other e-commerce sites and shipping the products to customers will be punished accordingly.
