It could be said that Nintendo sees 'core' as 'core Nintendo fans' rather than a more generic gaming fan. But, as seen in the last couple of generations, core Nintendo fans do not spread the wealth. They buy Nintendo products. And it could be argued that many gamers have at least two consoles and their 3rd party money goes to that other system. Except we've seen so many quality exclusive 3rd party games flop on Nintendo systems that it gives the impression that Nintendo is the home of the frugal gamer.
There is of course, one logical conclusion: Nintendo wants to only have 20 million or so consoles sold per generation. They know their market penetration, they know how favorable or unfavorable they appear to the loud mouths on the Internet.
Nintendo is systematically and deliberately communicating a particular message. And this message is weeding out those that Nintendo does not want to do business with. Nintendo sells toys, not entertainment systems. And they are kicking and fighting all the way to stop from selling entertainment systems, probably because: they don't have the experienced staff to provide such a system; and the backbone and upkeep on such systems is tremendous, which is why Microsoft and Sony are charging for their online services.
What's difficult for us is that Microsoft and Sony are changing the metric upon how we judge gaming as a hobby. It's easy to lump Nintendo in with MS and Sony because they all basically do the same thing. I know I want Nintendo to step up to bat and directly compete, but it's not their business plan. All they want to do is make money with as little effort as possible. Not saying that making games is not hard. They do that very well. It's the bells and whistles beyond the games. They don't have a way to monetize that effort in a meaningful way that promotes their basic message.
Some of us, including me, need to accept this fact, understand that Nintendo does things for a purpose, and that even though we do not comprehend the purpose all of our dialogue on the Internet is not going to sway Nintendo to our way of thinking.
I would also say that there are 3rd parties that listen to fans, and have tried to get Nintendo "in-line" with the rest of the industry, and failed. This I believe is the biggest reason there is a lack of support for the WiiU, and will continue to decline for each generation after. And makes certain companies' focus on mobile so odd, because mobile systems are so close to gaming toys rather than serious gaming systems, while also would seem that Nintendo would be a great fit. Except that Nintendo would have to make their own smart phone to control the environment in which their games exist and to make sure no one else profits from their games.