Nintendo chief says the "future is dark" if their customers can't tell what sets their handhelds apart. http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=20298 Nintendo president Satoru Iwata recently weighed in with his thoughts on the competition presented in the handheld gaming space by Apple's iPhone. While he said that it makes him "uncomfortable" to have Apple consistently presented as a Nintendo rival, he did admit that Nintendo has to be sure to communicate what sets their portables apart from the iPhone and iPod Touch.
While gaming fans are already aware of the strengths of the Nintendo DS platform and its stellar library of exclusive franchises, Iwata stressed the importance of communicating these selling points to the broader game-buying audience.
"If we can't make clear why customers pay a lot of money to play games on Nintendo hardware and Nintendo software and differentiate ourselves from games on the mobile phone or iPhone, then our future is dark," he said.
The expanded-functionality Nintendo DSi, released last year, is still selling well, and the soon-to-be-released Nintendo DS LL is aimed at expanding the system's reach to older users.
However, research firm DFC Intelligence recently stated that they feel the growth of dedicated portable game platforms like Sony's PSP and Nintendo's DS has peaked, and that Apple's iPhone will drive the portable gaming segment over the next five years. They estimate that the iPhone game market will rise from its current $46 million to $2.8 billion by 2014, while they expect revenue from dedicated handheld software platforms to shrink 27 percent to $6.3 billion in the same time frame.
Iwata has recently expressed interest in a handheld digital distribution model akin to Amazon's Kindle e-Reader, which gives users free wireless content downloads for the device within the United States through an agreement with wireless carrier Sprint. This means that, unlike the iPhone, there is no ongoing fee for users to pay.
As usual, Iwata played his cards close to his chest regarding the future of Nintendo's portable strategy. "My job is to find the potential in something that others can not see, to secretly pour our resources into them and turn them into hits before anyone else catches on," he said.