Report: High-Speed Cell Service Could Come to Nintendo, Sony Devices
Sony and Nintendo are in talks to add 3G network connections to their next line of handheld game machines, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
The newspaper reports that Ryuji Yamada, president of NTT DoCoMo Inc., Japan's biggest wireless carrier by subscribers, is in talks with video game hardware makers to allow portable game machines to connect to 3G networks.
"Videogame makers know that in order for portable game machines to take the next step forward, they need wireless communication," said Mr. Yamada in an interview on Wednesday. "We are discussing this with various players."
Yamada declined to identify the specific companies, but the Wall Street Journal thinks that both Nintendo and Sony could be included in those talks, both of which declined to comment for the story.
During a meeting with analysts at E3, a Nintendo spokesman said that there will probably be discussions with carriers in the future but didn't elaborate.
The Wall Street Journal reported in March that Sony was working on two new gaming devices, one that appears to be a sort of smartphone and another that sounds a bit like a tablet computer.
It would make sense for both companies to add 3G network support to their upcoming portables if they want to stay competitive with the blossoming gaming support coming to devices like the iPhone and iPad.
Source:
Kotaku
