Nintendo President Says The Pokémon Company Will ‘Take Measures’ to Respond to Widespread Card Scalping Issues
Despite printing 10 billion Pokémon trading cards last year, widespread shortages and scalping issues continue to plague the Pokémon Trading Card Game, prompting Nintendo’s president to pledge action.
The ongoing crisis stems from scalpers purchasing new card releases in bulk and reselling them at inflated prices on secondary markets like eBay, leaving legitimate customers unable to purchase products at retail. The problem has been exacerbated by a surge in organized retail theft, with multiple high-profile incidents of thieves stealing large quantities of card boxes from stores across North America. Recent thefts have included coordinated heists netting hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of inventory.
Despite unprecedented production volumes, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have struggled to meet demand while combating bad-faith actors exploiting the collectible card game’s popularity. The president’s statement indicates the company recognizes the severity of the situation and plans to implement unspecified measures to address both the scalping problem and retail theft. Previous efforts have included limiting individual purchases and attempting to improve supply chain security, though these have proven insufficient.
The scalping issue threatens to damage the long-term health of the Pokémon TCG community, potentially discouraging casual players who cannot compete with automated resellers and driving fans to the secondary market rather than official retailers.