Nintendo boss Reggie Fils-Aime writes in a new CNet Perspective editorial that if technology companies want to find new avenues for profit, they should focus less on old ways of thinking and look to creating products that are smaller, cheaper and easier to use. He says, quite simply, the "next generation of R&D should balance what's under the hood with what users want to hold in their hands."

Reggie points to the "technical divide" that separates the world's haves and have-nots, traditionally understood as distanced by monetary wealth. In the context of his argument, haves and have-nots (technophobes) are also separated by increased technical complexity.

Fils-Aime argues that instead of doing more of the same, technology leaders should target not only their core, spec-driven consumer, but those left "frustrated" by the learning curve of understanding complex systems. Using the example of Nintendo's own Wii and, more simply, cereal companies reshaping their products into breakfast bars, the Nintendo prez challenges more companies to utilize the "blue ocean" strategy to target untapped consumers in "white spaces."

Say, those are Wii colors. Coincidence? Michael McWhertor

Perspective: Nintendo on the latest 'technical divide' [CNet]

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