(Yicai) Nov. 27 -- Tencent Holdings, the distributor of the Nintendo Switch in China, will gradually close the console's Chinese online store and stop providing related network services.

The Nintendo eShop will halt the sale of games and other software in the Chinese market on March 31, 2026, Shenzhen-based Tencent announced yesterday. From May 15, 2026, all download and code redemption services on eShop will also be suspended.

As compensation, Tencent said that users of the Switch Chinese edition can redeem their codes for up to four Nintendo online games or software through WeChat between today and March 31, 2026.

The online store of the Switch Chinese edition has always been operated by a network service provider that has partnered with Nintendo for a long time, Chinese technology media 36Kr reported, citing sources.

However, due to recent changes in its Chinese business, the network service provider is unable to transfer its operations to another company, the 36Kr source added. As a result, Tencent had to make relevant adjustments.

Tencent partnered with Nintendo in April 2019 to bring the Japanese company's portable console to the Chinese market. In December of that year, the pair jointly announced the launch of a battery-life-extended version of the Switch.

According to the latest data released by Tencent, the Chinese edition of the Switch sold more than one million copies in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Editor: Futura Costaglione