Nintendo’s US president Reggie Fils-Aime in an interview on Friday ruled out the prospect of a phone. The console maker had “no desire” to get into the business and expected it could compete with Apple, Microsoft, and Sony through a dedicated gaming device. He didn’t see Nintendo as having expertise it could bring to bear in the area and told CNN that phones were almost antithetical to a game system like the 3DS.
“Phones are utilities,” he explained. “Phones are not by definition entertainment devices.”
A Japanese producer for the firm, Hideki Konno, added that there were “so many additional costs” to a phone. If Nintendo had to share revenues with carriers, it might have to roll the cost into the games themselves.