Overview
- Fils-Aimé, speaking Saturday at an NYU Game Centre lecture, said an Amazon executive sought an “obscene amount” of financial support so Amazon could undercut Walmart on price.
- He said he told the executive the request was illegal and refused, which he says led Nintendo to stop selling Wii and DS systems to Amazon at the time.
- He cited Nintendo’s DS-era scale, noting about 10 million units sold per year in the Americas, which he said gave the company leverage to walk away and to protect ties with other retailers.
- Outlets report the relationship stayed rocky for years, including a pause in 2024, before the companies later reconciled for the Nintendo Switch 2 launch.
- The account offers a rare look at how retailer subsidies can raise antitrust concerns in pricing and how a manufacturer may reject a major seller to avoid favoring one partner over others.