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greenwave3 (68.26)

Nintendo-Apple tie up?

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June 16, 2010 – Comments (7) | RELATED TICKERS: AAPL , NTDOY.PK

I've been dreaming for a while about a Nintendo-Apple tie up...

 If you consider that gaming is one of the only arenas that Apple basically lets Microsoft dominate, the prospect of Apple and Nintendo combining is an interesting one. Aside from the obvious competition with Xbox, developers for Nintendo would immediately have access and motivation to write gaming titles for the Mac OS as well. As a Mac user, I can say with certainty that Mac is clearly lacking in serious and functional games. 

When you consider that Macs are built for performance, they make the perfect gaming consoles (Mac Pros max out around 32gb of RAM, as compared to about 8gb on a serious PC gaming console). Nintendo is too large of a company to actually purchase, but a merger certainly seems feasible.

 Any Foolish thoughts?

wave 

7 Comments – Post Your Own

#1) On June 16, 2010 at 11:22 PM, greenwave3 (68.26) wrote:

I realize that Apple could internally develop a gaming platform, but this is instant market access and a marketable brand (plus Netflix tie-up to compete with Google and You-Tube aspirations).

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#2) On June 17, 2010 at 12:14 AM, GyroDynasty (98.64) wrote:

I have a feeling the Japanese would not like the idea of merging with an American company.  In this case I think it would be a matter of pride, but if Nintendo were dying like Sega, I think it might come to pass one day.  

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#3) On June 17, 2010 at 12:49 AM, TMFCrocoStimpy (82.35) wrote:

Potential marketing nightmare - could you sell an iWii?  :P

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#4) On June 17, 2010 at 9:08 AM, Turfscape (38.42) wrote:

Apple has a gaming platform. They call it iOS. Seriously. The Apple business model goes beyond single set-box unit gaming to integrated mobile device-based gaming with an operating system that lets anyone and everyone who wants to shell out a few hundred bucks for the SDK to directly compete with the likes of Nintendo.

This business model is working for them...extremely well. Why would they want to distract themselves and split their efforts along competing gaming philosophies like that?

Apple is seeing huge success by identifing its core strengths and owning those channels. A Nintendo partnership or acquisition would not be in those core strengths. Apple would simply be chasing a competitor for the sake of chasing a competitor. And that's exactly what MSFT has been doing for the past few years...and it's gotten them nowhere.

Apple + Nintendo would be as disastrous as HOG + MV Agusta...just a bad idea from start to finish. Focus on core strengths. Identify new markets. Don't chase competitors...make them chase you!

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#5) On June 17, 2010 at 9:09 AM, Turfscape (38.42) wrote:

TMFCrocoStimpy wrote:
"Potential marketing nightmare - could you sell an iWii?  :P"

Clever. I'll give it my +1 rec!

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#6) On June 17, 2010 at 6:19 PM, greenwave3 (68.26) wrote:

i'll wii if you do  :)

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#7) On June 18, 2010 at 4:44 PM, jericson (99.77) wrote:

Not to pile on or anything, but these are fundamentally different companies that share a unique dedication to a specific design ethic.  

Apple is and has always been a hardware company.  They want to make money by selling a premium and well designed piece of electronics.  For the most part, they don't contribute either content or software.  Therefore, their platform is designed to provide content at the lowest possible price.  That's why they designed iTunes to sell you individual tracks and why the usual price for iPhone games is quite low.  Only if a partner has significant leverage (i.e., Adobe and AT&T) does content or software demand a premium.

Nintendo is an integrated platform company.  That means they need to  balance hardware, software and content prices in order to maximize their platform's potential.  They are also the number one content provider on their own platforms.  

What could help Apple become a player in the home console business has already happened--Steam (the iTunes of PC games) on the Mac. 

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