Microsoft Announces plans to Buy Nintendo

[Dark Hero]

Misquote? Trial balloon? Or merely proof that humor travels poorly, if at all, between cultures?

A German financial magazine, WirtschaftsWoche, reported Wednesday that Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said he was interested in buying Nintendo, the maker of video games and consoles.

Many Web sites and several news services picked up the report, and Microsoft's public relations team shifted swiftly into gear for damage control and denial. Its stuffy corporate statement was that Microsoft did not comment on "rumors or speculation."

Beyond that, the Microsoft view was clearly that the reported comments were out of context and out of bounds. The remark attributed to Gates was made during an informal cocktail reception after Microsoft's yearly financial analysts' meeting July 29 at the company's headquarters in Redmond, Wash. A few dozen journalists also attended.

For more than an hour, Gates stood, sipped bottled water and fielded questions of all kinds from an encircling pack. He looked almost like a high school football coach lecturing his team, without the uniforms.


The article on the German magazine's Web site carried the headline, "Bill Gates: Interest in Nintendo Takeover." The article said that when asked about the possibility of acquiring Nintendo, Gates said how much he liked the company and that Microsoft would bid, if it were for sale.

"If Hiroshi Yamauchi calls, he'll get me on the line right away," Gates was quoted as saying, in a reference to Nintendo's former president and largest shareholder.

Microsoft does not dispute the accuracy of the quotation. But a company executive who was standing nearby said that all the context and nuance were lost in translation. The comment by Gates, he said, was meant as an "admiring joke." Oh, those literal-minded Germans.

For its part, Nintendo is not amused. Known for its Mario, Donkey Kong and Pokemon games and its GameCube and Game Boy machines, Nintendo is not engaged in merger talks with Microsoft nor is it interested, a company spokesman said.

"We're going to make great game hardware and software for a long time to come," said Tom Harlin, a spokesman. "Nintendo's in it to win."

Microsoft has sold 15.5 million Xbox game consoles since it entered the market in 2002, but the business continues to lose money and will for years until it has more software titles for its increasingly popular machines. Nintendo, which is profitable, might well make an attractive target for Microsoft, analysts say. Such a move, they add, would give Microsoft a lift against its biggest rival, Sony.

Web sites for video game enthusiasts were positively twitching with intrigue. A posting on the GameCube Europe site marveled at the possibility of one console able to play both Nintendo and Microsoft games, great graphics and multiplayer Internet capabilities--"very good news."

At the Xbox365.com site, a Nintendo sale was deemed a long shot. Still, warming to the speculation, the site noted that adding Nintendo would be "a major shot in the arm for Xbox."

"Either way, we're taking this rumor with a strong cup of coffee," declared Xbox365.com. "Who knows why they begin?"


Entire contents, Copyright c 2004 The New York Times. All rights reserved


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Oh... my... Fucking... God...

[Perfect Warrior]

Nintendo and Microsoft? Ack! >__< That cannot possibly work!

If Nintendo was dying, then maybe I'd think differently...

[DraArk]

Holy shit....... so that rummor might be ture that the creator of nintendo might resign............

[Hyperblade]

Dammit, this would be the worst thing to happen in the console wars, if Bill buys out Nintendo, its literally over for Sony...this better be jus a rumour

[Dark Hero]

Microsoft: All Your Base Are Belong to Us

[DraArk]

That song rocks!!!!!!

I don't know, Nintendo still has its core audience and as long as they keep making money they won't sell out.

~Jace

Wow if nintendo gets baught by Microsoft im never playin video games again>_

[Duo]

LOL I wouldn't get TOOO worked up, its probly just a rumor started by some off handed sarcastic coment of Mr. Gates.

If it did happen... well... I'm not sure what I'd do... :/

[AlienTiger]

hehe no worries guys, nintende pretty much said OVER MY DEAD BODY, and since no ones killed me yet, Id say its ok ;P

hehe heres a link for ya
h**p://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/08/06/news_6104348.html

[Col. Sanders]

Awesomely Awesome i'm new. Alroight ya if microsoft did ever buy them tho i think it wouldn't work out, cus as of now the audience for nintendo id like children mainly and X-box tries to be more mature so thtey'd have little kids wanting to... naw i don;t no it just really wouldn't work out. and i'd probly stick strictly to pc id that happened.

[jarjar911]

That would completely suck if Nintendo got bought out my Microsoft. I mean, one of their programs, Microsoft Works, is an oxymoron in itself. I doubt that Nintendo ever had thoughts recently about giving up its position in the Games Race. Although, if Nintendo needs a morale boost, I'd be happy to respond!

[DaddyFatSacz]

jarjar991 said:

"Microsoft Works, is an oxymoron in itself"

^^^lol that's sum funny shit, and strangly true .
but hey, if nintendo did ever go up for sale, there is no way Bill wouldn't get his hands on it. if nintendo want 2 billion for there company, he would just pull his wallet out, slap down 3 billion... I imagin he has a big wallet...

[=PwN=Zer0LiMiTz]

This is impossible. Nintendo will never do that. They will never sell out to Microsoft a.k.a. Xbox. That's my opinion on it though...

heh, hope you don't mind my input.

But "if" Nintendo were to go out of business, there are several factors that you may want to consider...

No 1. Would Microsoft want to buy a company that's floundering ecconomically? if you recal AOL TIME WARNER, it's a company of companys... very profitable none the less... but it's AOL that's the biggest hitch and is the single biggest Money looser for the company... ( I suspect that that is why AOL grips you at the knees in trying to keep you from closing your account)

Second, if Nintendo were to go out of business, it does have the options of A doing what Sega did and become thrid party, or B it could sell out.

Now if you consider that Nintendo is not a fan of some of the "material" the X-box prints out, and the fact that it would make Bill Gates more powerful then he already is; Nintendo could decide to sell to a differnt company on principal.

And on the thought of the oxymoron of Microsoft Works... have you considered the irony of Microsoft XP? If you take Microsoft out of the picture it becomes XP... Ironically, that's how I feel about the system.