Ugh, this kind of reporting irks me.

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StupidGamer

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#1  Edited By StupidGamer

Now I know this is just a blog post on a fanboy's web site, but I think there's a larger discussion to be had than "Apple fanboys suck, lol". Here's the article, I'll make my points on the other side of the quote. 
  

Nintendo’s soon-to-be released 3DS device is causing a stir in the gaming industry. But there’s a caveat hidden in all the buzz.

On Monday, well-known gaming industry analyst Michael Pachter released a research note proclaiming the forthcoming Nintendo 3DS would “revolutionize the gaming industry.” His belief was based on the new device’s 3D experience, which he says will not only spur sales of gaming hardware (he predicts Nintendo will quickly sell 10 million units), but also raise prices of software.

As I discuss in a post at GigaOM Pro today, Pachter may be right about the company being able to sell 10 million units fairly quickly, but he’s wrong about the overall prognosis for the 3DS.

The problem isn’t so much that the 3DS won’t be a unique gaming experience, it’s that the device, and with it, the gaming experience, is built around an antiquated business model popularized over 20 years ago by Nintendo and the Gameboy. With the Gameboy, Nintendo created a model centered around the release of a new generation of hardware every five years or so and by the sales of expensive software titles over the life of the device.

But in an apps-driven world where the iPhone and iPod touch rule (and Android is making huge forward strides), this model poses a couple of different problems.

The first is the hardware life cycle and associated pricing of 3DS. Nintendo has already seen the impact of the iPod Touch, and at a likely price of $250, the 3DS may not be worth the money when compared with Apple’s offerings. (While the iPod touch currently tops out at $399 from an entry point of $199, it offers consumers more bang for their buck.) And as for five-year hardware cycles, that’s a lifetime for consumers who have grown accustomed to a new iPhone every year.

However, the bigger problem for Nintendo and the 3DS is the software model. Nintendo has grown rich on a model premised on tight control of select software titles through approved partners. These partners traditionally release expensive titles through brick and mortar and online stores.

That model worked in the past, but not in today’s market. The app-store model has unleashed a wave of innovative new games (36 thousand at last count) from hungry developers looking to free themselves from the long, expensive and highly restricted development cycles associated with traditional console gaming. In comparison, Nintendo’s process is the mobile game software equivalent of the Soviet Union: too much control, artificially inflated prices, too little choice.

Nintendo may have re-invented handheld gaming with the DS, but the visual trickery on the 3DS won’t be enough to create a sustained multi-year sales cycle. The device is doomed, and Apple killed it.


Source to the original article:  http://gigaom.com/2010/07/28/nintendo-3ds-a-broken-business-model/ 
 
So basically this guy is claiming that the 3DS is dead in the water because of the rise of Apple's handheld devices. At the very end of the DS life cycle it's still selling over 500,000 units a month when software has been kind of slow. There's no data to back up these claims, at all. In fact, if there is any evidence, it's that these devices co-exist quite easily and their market overlap isn't as strong as people like to think.  
 
Anyway, the point I really want to make is that there's this newish style of reporting that's rampant in the blogosphere where a writer will write insanely inflammatory "predictions" that usually paint their preferred product in a very positive light. The result is tons of linking (like I did here), tons of commenting, and a surge in traffic for a few days to the post. The writer ultimately doesn't care if the prediction is false, because the Internet masses will be onto the next thing by the time the writer would normally have to eat crow. The art of reporting is now the art of attracting clicks, and accountability is out the window. 
 
I have a blog, and I try really hard not to fall into the link bait trap. It is this sort of article, however, that undermines the very reputation of bloggers everywhere. For every article like this, I feel like my blog's credibility takes a hit by association, no matter how loose it is.
 
Thoughts?
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ClaritySam

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#2  Edited By ClaritySam

I find a good rule of thumb is to stop reading any article as soon as you get to the words "Industry expert/analyst Michael Pachter" lol

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Butchio

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#3  Edited By Butchio

theres lots of sites like this and all they are doing is tryin to get a reaction to get hits on thier site (N4G is by far the worst at this) The best thing to do is ignore them and dont give them what they want which is the hit

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SteamPunkJin

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#4  Edited By SteamPunkJin
@ClaritySam said:
" I find a good rule of thumb is to stop reading any article as soon as you get to the words "Industry expert/analyst Michael Pachter" lol "
I seriously don't know how this guy still has a job.
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StupidGamer

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#5  Edited By StupidGamer
@butchio said:
" theres lots of sites like this and all they are doing is tryin to get a reaction to get hits on thier site (N4G is by far the worst at this) The best thing to do is ignore them and dont give them what they want which is the hit "
While I agree with you, the signal to noise ratio in the blogosphere is getting worse. To liken it to gaming terms, it's almost as if we're leading into that industry crash that hit in the early '80s. There are so many poorly written pieces that picking out the gems is becoming increasingly difficult, and I think lots of people are getting fed up with bloggers overall. I don't make a living off of my blog, but it does concern me that the practice of blogging itself is just becoming more and more of a joke. 
 
I guess it wouldn't be the end of the world if blogging "crashed", so to speak. Sites like GB and other major outlets are so much more disciplined in their approach to writing that maybe it could cause some reform in the blogger circles out there at some point if traffic started shifting back to traditional media.
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BraveToaster

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#6  Edited By BraveToaster

Fanboy's are going to hate, I just avoid being part of their dumbfuckery.

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ClaritySam

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#7  Edited By ClaritySam
@SteamPunkJin said:
" @ClaritySam said:
" I find a good rule of thumb is to stop reading any article as soon as you get to the words "Industry expert/analyst Michael Pachter" lol "
I seriously don't know how this guy still has a job. "
Me or Michael Pachter? :-)
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Icil

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#8  Edited By Icil

Media and news very much has a supply/demand thing going on the same way the economy does. 
  
This guy's blog is shovelware. He's making shit in hopes that it'll 'sell' (people will read) and therefore reinforce his brand (his blog) so that he can actually make it in the market. He's hoping that his crazy prediction is right, and if it is, he's got a ticket to making money off his blog. 
 
It's not new, I don't think. Rather, I think the Internet, in giving people a very easy venue for their voices, is bringing more crazy into the spotlight. So sure, this blog is poo, but for every one of this guy, there's more valid opinions being made by some more levelheaded people.

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recroulette

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#9  Edited By recroulette
@Icil said:
" Media and news very much has a supply/demand thing going on the same way the economy does.   This guy's blog is shovelware. He's making shit in hopes that it'll 'sell' (people will read) and therefore reinforce his brand (his blog) so that he can actually make it in the market. He's hoping that his crazy prediction is right, and if it is, he's got a ticket to making money off his blog.  It's not new, I don't think. Rather, I think the Internet, in giving people a very easy venue for their voices, is bringing more crazy into the spotlight. So sure, this blog is poo, but for every one of this guy, there's more valid opinions being made by some more levelheaded people. "
 
I think for every one of this guy, there are 4 more of this guy, and one guy who isn't as dumb.
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ch13696

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#10  Edited By ch13696
@StupidGamer: I'm definitely with you on blogs now and days are crap. Well, most blogs. People like drama and that's how you receive attention. It may be bad attention, but you're still getting the publicity you want. Kotaku does articles on all kinds of crap that has nothing to do with games, but they find some way to put gaming in that article. That just goes back to any kind of publicity will do. And possibly a slow news day.
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The_Bee

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#11  Edited By The_Bee

I have a hard time seeing ANY blog as a credible news source, or "reporting". 

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Maxynator

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#12  Edited By Maxynator

" and at a likely price of $250, the 3DS may not be worth the money when compared with Apple’s offerings."
Worst journalist ever, you have to describe the problem and note the pro's and con's, you should never offer an opinion to other people.

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empfeix

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#13  Edited By empfeix
@ClaritySam said:

" @SteamPunkJin said:

" @ClaritySam said:
" I find a good rule of thumb is to stop reading any article as soon as you get to the words "Industry expert/analyst Michael Pachter" lol "
I seriously don't know how this guy still has a job. "
Me or Michael Pachter? :-) "  
 
Analyst aside, I love the guy.  He has a segment on gametrailers and I think he's funny and I love hearing his point of view.  Alot of people hate this guy, maybe its because he makes bold predictions that don't pan out.  I don't really envy his position hindsight is a much easier guessing game. 
 
To reply to the OP, the internet is a crowded space, people are going to troll and flame users as best they can if they think it will bring traffic.  Very few sites make it big based on quality content so a lot of people don't even try.
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fini_fly

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#14  Edited By fini_fly

So read a news source, not a blog.
 
@The_Bee
said:

" I have a hard time seeing ANY blog as a credible news source, or "reporting".  "
This pretty much sums it up for me.
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angelfan91

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#15  Edited By angelfan91
@ClaritySam said:
"I find a good rule of thumb is to stop reading any article as soon as you get to the words "Industry expert/analyst Michael Pachter" lol "

This works really well.
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Gaff

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#16  Edited By Gaff

About the original article:  

He has a point that digital delivery is the future. But! 

  1. Most 'core gamers still have an allergic reaction when you mention "digital delivery". Not to mention that the more casual gamers 
  2. 1 year hardware cycles are great for phones because they don't impact the basic functionality of phones, which is *gasp* making phone calls. Console manufacturers would get lynched by the publishers if they did that.
 
A few caveats: I haven't seen earnings calls by iPhone developers (profits, costs, sales) nor compared them to "normal" developers, but my gut feeling says 1M sales at $0.99 is less than 1M sales at $40. Then again, my gut feeling says that I could really go for some fat fast food. 
 
While his hunches might be wrong, he has managed to land a job at a subscription based analyst site. It sucks to know that given that he's wrong about this particular aspect, but... He's getting paid (and I'm not! Curses!). 
 
@empfeix: As a general rule: People never listen if you're right, but pound on you if you're wrong :( 
 
Also, AWwwwwwwww! Pach's dog!
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SpaceInsomniac

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#17  Edited By SpaceInsomniac

Until the iPod has a d-pad, this guy can praise the thing until he's blue in the face, but it won't change the fact that it's poorly designed for gaming.
 
And I couldn't agree more about your assessment of this blogger in question.  It's a fine example of really shitty journalism.  Thanks for copy/pasting the text in full, so I don't have to give a page hit to this guy.

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peepeepoopoo696

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#18  Edited By peepeepoopoo696

I don't pay attention to crap like this.