Satoru Iwata downplays resignation talk

Toward the beginning of Nintendo's current fiscal year, company president Satoru Iwata made a commitment to shareholders that the company would achieve significant operating profits. This morning, Nintendo slashed its full-year fiscal forecasts in the wake of weak holiday hardware sales and projected an operating loss for the first time this year, prompting Satoru Iwata to answer questions about his possible resignation.

According to a Reuters report, Iwata apologized to shareholders for the expected shortfall, but dismissed the idea that he should step down as a result.

"There will be no major management shake-up in the short term," Iwata said.

Iwata had already addressed the possibility of his resignation should Nintendo fail to meet its goals this fiscal year. Last July, he told investors that when he made the commitment to post operating profits, people inferred a promise to resign if he failed. However, that was never his intent.

"I have put a lot of energy into thinking about how we can accomplish this performance goal, but comparatively I have not put much effort into considering what we should do if we fail to achieve it," Iwata said at the time. "I also believe now is not the time to mention those things concretely. In that sense, I would like you to think that the word 'commitment,' which I used before, means we have the intention to put in our best effort and ensure that we achieve this goal."

Nintendo stock is trading down sharply as a result of the results, off more than 14 percent to $15.36 in overseas trading as of press time.