Reggie Fils-Aimé Explains Why Nintendo Stopped Selling to Amazon
Former Nintendo of America President says Amazon wanted 'obscene amount of financial support' that would have been illegal
Quick Look
- Former Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aimé revealed during an NYU lecture that Nintendo stopped selling to Amazon in the DS era because Amazon sought preferential treatment involving financial support that would have been illegal and harmed relationships with other retailers.
- Fils-Aimé told an Amazon executive, 'You know that's illegal, right?
- I can't do that.' The two companies have since reconciled, and Switch 2 is now available on Amazon.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
This story provides insight into Nintendo's business philosophy under Reggie Fils-Aimé's leadership, demonstrating the company's approach to maintaining retailer relationships and refusing potentially illegal business practices. The DS era spanned 2004-2011.
Way back in the DS days, Nintendo decided to stop selling to Amazon. During a recent lecture at NYU, former Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aimé said it was because Amazon was seeking preferential treatment that would have hurt its relationship with other retailers, and potentially broken the law. The two sides have since made amends, and you can buy a Switch 2 through Amazon. But for a long time, Nintendo consoles had been largely unavailable on the site.
In the 2000s, Amazon aggressively expanded beyond books and tried to undercut everyone on price. According to Fils-Aimé, Amazon wanted to undercut even Walmart and was looking for an “obscene amount of support, financial support.” While he didn’t specify what kind of financial support Amazon was looking for, Fils-Aimé says he told the Amazon executive in question, “You know that's illegal, right? I can't do that.”
He went on to say this was part of the reason the company ended its relationship with Amazon: “Literally, we stopped selling to Amazon, and it's because I wasn't going to do something illegal. I wasn't going to do something that would put at risk the relationship we have with other retailers. But it also set the stage to say, look, you're not going to push me around. This is the way we do business. And so that's how, over time, you build respect.”
Open Questions
- What specific financial support was Amazon requesting?
- When exactly did Nintendo resume selling on Amazon?
- What was the financial impact of the split on both companies?
