What this is
An estimate of what The Pokémon Company earns from licensing Pokémon GO, years to February 2018–2027: for example ¥13.6–25.6bn in the year to February 2026.
How it’s built
- Take GO’s app-store player spending for each March–February year, from AppMagic, an app-data vendor, converted to yen.
- Multiply by 13.1–23.0%: the share the Tokyo company appears to have kept in GO’s first year, worked out from its profit that year.
- Compare with the Tokyo company’s filed revenue and profit: 2.6–4.8% of revenue in the year to February 2026.
What we assumed
- The rate implied by the Tokyo company’s profit in the year to February 2017 still applies.No contract or rate has been published; this is the only calibration point. It is the main uncertainty.
- Only app-store spending counts; GO’s web store is excluded.Whether the licence covers web-store sales is in no document; a companion estimate shows the web-store case.
- Scopely, which took over GO in May 2025, pays the same rate as Niantic.The rate under Scopely has not been observed.
- The take is booked in the Tokyo company.In GO’s first year the Tokyo company held an estimated 44–100% of the group’s take; any share booked overseas would sit outside these ratios.
Sanity check
In the year to February 2021 the top of the band exceeds the Tokyo company’s entire pre-tax profit, so it is capped there. The share of revenue falls each year as cards and Pocket grow.
Where it comes from
Our calculation from other figures in the trainer’s notes:
- EstimateTPC take if licence reaches web store, TPC year to February 2024-year to February 2027
- EstimateAn estimate of Pokémon GO’s pretax profit at the Tokyo parent in the year to February 201713–22%
- EstimateGo app store gross by TPC fiscal year appmagic basis, TPC year to February 2018-year to February 2027 (Mar-Feb)
- EstimateTPC's Pokémon GO take as a share of spending in GO's launch year (to February 2017), depending on whose spending estimate is used13–23
Show the working
- take = JPY base × 13.1-21.6% (Q13 as calibrated) and × 16.1-23.0% (AppMagic-basis,)
- union low = 0.131 × low base, high = 0.230 × high base
- FY2/26: 0.131 × 103.7 = 13.6
- 0.230 × 111.2 = 25.6
- /531.4 = 2.6-4.8%
- /144.0 OP = 9.4-17.8%
- FY2/21: 0.131 × 132.6 = 17.4
- 0.230 × 138.4 = 31.8
- /120.0 = 14.5-26.5%
- /27.8 OP = 62.5-114.5%
Where it’s used
Related figures
Built from this one
- EstimateAppmagic cy2025 gross gross up sensitivity, 2025
- EstimateGo take year to February 2021 ceiling applied, TPC year to February 202117.4 to 28.5 ¥ billion
- EstimateGo take measure is pretax calibrated, TPC year to February 2017-year to February 2021
- ReportedGames line map publisher developer booker, as of 29 October 2026
- EstimateGo licence take by TPC fiscal year carried and 50% estimate rejected, TPC year to February 2020-year to February 2027