At the recent GKM PlayTime conference in New York, Nintendo of America's Peter MacDougall countered rumors that Nintendo may not produce a console after the GameCube. MacDougall, who is Nintendo's executive VP of sales and marketing, also talked about how the audience for console games has extended in recent years to include an older demographic and how Nintendo is focusing more attention on GameCube games with more mature content.

　　At the end of his presentation, MacDougall expressed Nintendo's future commitments: "Nintendo is in the software business--to stay. Nintendo is in the handheld business--to stay. And Nintendo is most certainly in the home console business--to stay. Work is well under way on the successor technology to both Game Boy Advance and Nintendo GameCube."

　　MacDougall explained that there's a direct relationship between the growth of the handheld market and the console audience getting older. He said that one explanation is that the high cost of the current-generation consoles and games and the fact that many of the popular titles are rated Teen and Mature have worked to drive younger gamers to the Game Boy Advance, which he reiterated is the fastest-selling game platform ever in the US. The e-Reader and its low-priced games are a part of Nintendo's effort to further reach out to young gamers, who tend to have less disposable income.

　　Nintendo's biggest marketing push this holiday season is behind the Teen-rated Metroid Prime. Leading up to the holidays, Nintendo will spend more marketing money on Metroid Prime than the company has spent on any other single game in the last three years.

　　MacDougall listed several other strategies Nintendo is pursuing to connect with older gamers:

　　We're about to move to market limited supplies of our platinum version of Nintendo GameCube hardware, which promises very strong appeal to older players

　　Exclusive Nintendo Cube Clubs will run in urban storefronts in 15 cities, featuring live music and extensive hands-on game play

　　We'll be distributing 3.5 million DVDs featuring more than over 80 minutes of game play from two dozen new titles

　　We're sponsoring the U.S.S.A. Snowboarding Grand Prix

　　We're running promotional partnerships with companies like Heineken

　　We're conducting numerous out-of-home programs in schools, malls, college campuses, airports, and nightclubs

　　We'll have more details on Nintendo's upcoming hardware plans as they become available.