Satoru Iwata Talks About Nintendo’s New Membership Service

Nintendo held their Financial Results Briefing yesterday, and it proved to be a day filled with more than just numbers. Although we learned that Nintendo has returned to earning a profit, we also learned of a new partnership with Universal Parks & Resorts. No real details were given about the partnership, except that it has begun, and now I am sure we will all begin to wait impatiently for more information. At the briefing, Satoru Iwata talked about a few more tidbits on the new “Integrated Membership Service” previously announced after the discontinuation of Club Nintendo. The new service will encompass multiple devices and allow the user to access the service via a common ID. You will then have access to various services based on past purchases and gameplay records, as well as new services added specifically for this new loyalty program. The idea of the program is to “make it more fun to play Nintendo games with pals regardless of the platform”.

Hit jump to read the presentation given by Satoru Iwata on the new membership service.

Here is part of President and CEO of Nintendo, Satoru Iwata’s presentation given at the Financial Results Briefing:

On the other hand, Nintendo continues to have strong passion and believes in the promising prospects for the future of our dedicated video game system business. We will deploy our game business on smart devices not because we think that the dedicated game system business will wane, but because doing so will encourage a greater number of people to associate with Nintendo IP, to become familiar with the charms of video games and, eventually, to explore more premium experiences on our dedicated game systems. To realize this, we need to create a bridge between the two platforms.
When we announced our business alliance with DeNA, we announced an “integrated membership service,” with the mission of establishing a bridge between smart devices and dedicated game systems. The membership service will encompass multiple devices such as our existing Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, the dedicated game system NX, which is currently under development, smart devices and PCs.
While we will announce the details of this integrated membership service at a later date, I can share with you at a high level the idea is that the consumer can access multiple devices using one common ID.
For us to be able to bridge the gap between smart devices and dedicated game systems, we will offer advantages to consumers who use one ID across multiple devices.
So far, the members input their Club Nintendo ID to use the services. With this new service, our members will be able to visit Nintendo’s website and log in with one ID, and they will receive various services including the ones based on their past purchases and gameplay records as well as services that will be an improved version of the current loyalty program.
With this new membership, we are planning to deploy services that will make playing Nintendo games with their game pals more fun regardless of which platform they are accessing.

This only gives us a little more information about what the new “Integrated Membership Service” is, and I am a little skeptical. But to be fair I am also skeptical about their partnership with DENA. I am open to Nintendo expanding and bringing their IP’s to other devices, aside from dedicated gaming, as long as it is not at the cost of that dedicated gaming!

What are your thoughts about the new loyalty program? Do you think Nintendo should have discontinued Club Nintendo? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Source: Nintendo (via: nintendoeverything)