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Macronix has announced that ROM chip production has "reached its end" and that it will gradually exit the gaming industry. According to a report on November 5, 2026, Macronix is gradually shutting down its business of supplying ROM chips for Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 game cartridges, and is directing all of its NT$37.8 billion in capital expenditure toward NOR and NAND flash memory to meet AI data center demand. The share of its revenue from the ROM business has fallen from 26% in the same period last year to 5% in the third quarter of this year, and the third quarter is the last quarter in which the business will be disclosed separately. Macronix is not Nintendo's only ROM supplier; ROHM Semiconductor and Lapis Semiconductor are still supplying, but the reduction in suppliers could push up the prices of physical cartridges. Another report said that Macronix's ROM chip output has shrunk by 39% over the past year, and that Nintendo has committed to continuing to provide physical game cartridges.
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Solidot
Macronix, Nintendo's largest ROM chip supplier, prepares to exit
Macronix, Nintendo's largest ROM chip supplier, announced in its third-quarter financial report that it plans to end ROM chip production and leave the gaming industry. Its ROM chip output has shrunk 39% over the past year and now accounts for only 5% of its total business. Nintendo will in the future have to rely on other suppliers such as ROHM and Lapis Semiconductor, and game cartridge production costs may rise further. Nintendo has promised to continue offering physical game cartridges.
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Semiconductor Industry Observer
Macronix gradually shutting down Nintendo Switch cartridge ROM business, pivoting to AI data center storage
Macronix is gradually shutting down its business of supplying ROM chips for Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 game cartridges, directing its entire NT$37.8 billion capital expenditure toward NOR and NAND flash memory to meet AI data center demand. The ROM business's share of revenue has fallen from 26% in the same period last year to 5% in Q3 this year, and Q3 is the last quarter in which the business will be disclosed separately. Macronix is not Nintendo's only ROM supplier; ROHM Semiconductor and Lapis Semiconductor are still supplying, but the reduction in suppliers could push up the prices of physical cartridges.
Ars Technica
AI memory shortage hits Nintendo cartridges: major ROM chip supplier Macronix exits the gaming business
In its third-quarter earnings report, Macronix announced that ROM chip production "has reached its end" and that it will "gradually decouple from the gaming industry," while analyst David Gibson noted that it is the "main memory chip manufacturer" for Nintendo's physical game cartridges. Macronix's ROM business has shrunk 39% over the past year and now accounts for only 5% of its business, with capacity being squeezed by more profitable chips such as NOR, NAND memory, and eMMC. Its capacity remains at 25,000 12-inch wafers per month, and the planned additional $1.2 billion in capacity will take more than a year to begin production.
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