910°

Oh Wow, Amazon Really Hates Nintendo Consoles

Kotaku - For almost two years now, Amazon has not been selling Nintendo's gaming hardware first hand. You can buy a 3DS or Wii U from the massive online retailer, but it will be sold through a third party. Amazon won't sell Nintendo hardware themselves. And neither Nintendo nor Amazon will say why.

guitarded774060d ago (Edited 4060d ago )

LoL... I would love to know what is going on between Amazon and Nintendo. I heard all kinds of crap like they're mad because Nintendo won't give them Wal-Mart's pricing, and/or Nintendo gives preference to retail outlets.

dedicatedtogamers4060d ago (Edited 4060d ago )

This article is pointless...

The reason why this stuff shows up the way it does is because of advertising. The ad for PS4 is also on Amazon's main page. Do you know why it's on the main page? Because Sony does something called "pays for advertising" and then a magical fairy takes the money and converts it into an online ad! Tah-dah! The mystery has been solved.

It would be completely normal for Sony to say "hey Amazon, I'm going to give you an extra $x and I would like you to please put this ad on competitor's pages", which is a very normal thing to do in advertisement. And then Amazon says "hey, Sony, Microsoft pays advertising already, so I'm sorry, we can't put it on their page". Then Sony says "hmmm, what about Nintendo?" Then Amazon replies "oh, look here! Apparently Nintendo does not seem to advertise with us. It's a blank area. I suppose we would happily let you advertise on Nintendo's page since they don't want to advertise at all on our website".

Sony (and Microsoft) partner with Amazon, because if you look at the console listings, there are Amazon-exclusive PS3 bundles and 360 bundles. These bundles are possible because Sony and Microsoft made an arrangement with Amazon. If no such bundles exist for Nintendo, it's not because Amazon is an anti-Nintendo meanie-head. It's because Nintendo didn't want to make a deal with Amazon. It's that simple. It doesn't surprise me they're behind the ball with an online retailer. Nintendo is always a decade behind when it comes to online anything.

Elwenil4060d ago

Hmmm, when I go to Amazon there is an ad for a Kindle on the main page. You do realize that Amazon puts up ads and products based on your search history, don't you? Clear your cookie and you will probably get something completely different.

I'm not saying that various companies don't pay for advertising or special treatment from retailers as it's obvious that they do. All the same I don't think that explains Amazon's avoidance of selling Nintendo products. I also agree that the article is pointless as there are several of these "oddities" going on in the retail world and most of them we will never know the real reasons behind it.

Stroke6664060d ago

the thing is no other online retailer is doing this. its hard to believe sony would pay for amazon to do it but not cover their ground by doing it on some, if not all, other online retailers. just sounds fishy to me but oh well i got my wii u I'm good and nintendo will be fine

dedicatedtogamers4060d ago

@ Stroke666

Amazon is one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, online distributors of videogames and videogame systems. It would make sense that Sony would pour their advertising dollars into Amazon while not giving as much to other lesser-known websites.

ZombieNinjaPanda4059d ago

Hijacking this comment. If you don't want to see Kotaku any longer report all kotaku articles you see as lame. Make sure to rate them as WTF and NO.

BISHOP-BRASIL4059d ago

I always tought it would be something the other way around. Amazon shows competitor products in every product page, be it on ads, what other people viewing this also viewed, what other people viewing this bought, etc... Maybe Nintendo have some kind of contract to not allow any retailer to have a competitor mention in their booth/page, which conflicts with Amazon settings (since even when you are an advertiser, like MS and Sony, a competitor may show up in "people who viewed this page bought that", I had seen this on games and accessories from both Sony and MS, sometimes showing stuff from Wii too), so they don't sell it to avoid legal problems.

Of course I'm just guessing in the dark here... But hey, at least I'm not claiming to be a "gaming journalist".

zeee4059d ago

Kotaku is so pathetic! So very damn pathetic!

Ritsujun4059d ago Show
+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 4059d ago
Seraphim4059d ago

I'd imagine it has something to do with pricing or supply. Oddly enough though there's are PAGES of Nintendo DS's "Fulfilled by Amazon" and you know what that means? They're probably making more off these listings than they would be offering Nintendo products directly. Either way who frekn cares. Amazon customers can still their Nintendo products and Prime customers can still get our free 2 day shipping.... pointless article.

Gamer19824059d ago (Edited 4059d ago )

Me so they probably have a deal with Sony to link to their products in this way its not about hate.. If not then they obviously want money. They make next to nothing off 3rd partys selling nintendo consoles on amazon. But if they sell a Sony product they make a LOT more.

syanara4059d ago

arent the advertisements placed by a computer that dictates what is shown based on how many people are viewing certain pages, if Playstation consoles are getting the most views right now (which makes sense considering the recent PS4 announcements) then they wold probably come up all over the place versus Wii U which has not made any big announcements lately and still has a fuzzy marketing campaign

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4059d ago
SpiralTear4060d ago

It does seem extremely suspicious that Amazon recommends other consoles on Nintendo hardware pages, but not vice versa.

However, very interesting that this article didn't tell us why this is happening. Also, Kotaku has a knack for stupid and misleading headlines as always.

Knushwood Butt4059d ago

Well, Kotaku sucks, but Amazon Japan sell Nintendo hardware directly:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E4...

GreenRanger4060d ago

Maybe Nintendo hates Amazon?!

LOL_WUT4060d ago

It could also be the other way around or maybe its due to the fact that it's not selling well. ;)

PygmelionHunter4060d ago

Tell us LOL_WUT. What is it that is not selling well? Oh, you mean the Wii U? That's pretty funny since Amazon has been flipping the bird at Nintendo's face since the last decade.

TRY AGAIN ;)

Theyellowflash304060d ago

This is about the 3DS though, which is selling well. So your assessment is off.

PopRocks3594059d ago

The 3DS, which this article is actually about, is a best selling platform.

*face/palm*

miDnIghtEr20C_SfF4060d ago

Says sold by Amazon on their very own picture they use.

Fail.

OC_MurphysLaw4060d ago

As I recall there was a big falling out between Amazon and Nintendo over returns on the 3DS if my memory serves me right. The original version had an issue with wiring between the clam-shell. Again if my memory serves me right reports were Nintendo stopped accepting returns on it but Amazon was still obligated to take them back via their own policy. Amazon couldn't get Nintendo to honor the returns so they started shipping them back to Nintendo under a different warranty claim. Or something along those lines. In a nut shell, their relationship became very volatile and I have no doubts Amazon and Nintendo are both a bit leery of the other.

delboy4059d ago

You're right, and your memory serves you well.

Show all comments (64)
80°

Game Developers Have Begun Confirming Nintendo Switch 2 Support

Game developers have already started to confirm that they will support the Nintendo Switch 2 with their future titles.

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80°

How Many More Victims, Like Garry's Mod, Will Nintendo's Hurtful Crusade Create?

Hanzala from eXputer: "As Nintendo takes out 20 years' worth of stuff from Garry's Mod, I watch in shock, thinking why it continues to hurt and discourage its fans."

RiseNShine10d ago (Edited 10d ago )

The irony that some of the most disgusting business practices come from companies like Disney or Nintendo, i can't even begin to understand what terrible damage was Garrys Mod making to Nintendo bottom line, imho they're getting pretty nervous about where they're heading in the future, handhelds are no longer something exclusive to Nintendo, from Steam Deck to many others, now you can play the latest games and pay a fraction of the price on Steam sales, so it's up to their exclusives, which just on their own would make hard to justify purchasing a closed overpriced hardware with outrageous price policies (Super Mario Odyssey is still 60 euro 6 years later!), and as a home console they're always underperforming compared to Sony or Xbox.

gold_drake10d ago (Edited 10d ago )

i cam guarantee you, that their exclusives alone is what drives switch sales. they sell in the 10s of millions of copies.

nintendo created their franchises to be sort of nostalgia driven, exclusive only on nintendo.

people will always buy the pkmn games as they always bring in new younger fans amd is family friendly

mario kart, the same thing, mario games in general.

zelda games are system sellers. animal crossing for the casual gamers.

nintendo doesnt need third vame devs essentially. they made sure with the switch and the limitations that they looked more to pc ps and xbox.

its sad, but nintendo is more than fine with what they're doing. they positioned themselves to appeal to the more casual gamers.

but to your point, im not sure why they're doing this rly.

Inverno9d ago

Look at how they handled Nintendo games being streamed or uploaded on YouTube in the past. They killed Yuzu and Citra even when they had nothing to do with ToTK being leaked, not to mention it was basically unplayable on emulation the week it was leaked. Smash Bros tournament, that was fairly recent. They shut down their online services without any care for purchases made. I bought a switch after skipping their last 2 consoles and handhelds but I don't plan on buying anything Nintendo in the future. They take things to the extremes, they legitimately hate their fans. They're honestly right up there with the likes of Acti, EA, and Ubi, only difference is that they disguise themselves as being family friendly all the while being shady.

80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."