Japan’s vast animation industry fears strong consumer reaction to an extraordinary incident when hundreds of children suffered fits, vomiting and other symptoms while watching a cartoon on TV. The cartoon was based on a popular video game by Nintendo Co Ltd called pocket monsters. At least 618 children were affected – and some had to be rushed to hospital – when a character flashed its eyes red. The company’s shares fell 2.5% as analysts feared the epileptic-type effects could hit its long-term prospects. Dr Yukio Fukuyama, an expert of juvenile epilepsy, said bright flashes of light and colors triggered a phenomena known as television epilepsy and while the attacks were unpleasant, they were not dangerous. Nintendo claims that the incident won’t hurt sales.
á
Content from our partners
