So Nintendo has not chosen to take their world-renowned franchises and use them to crop-share on iOS, and we're calling this a failure to capitalize on an opportunity?

I don't think I could disagree more.

These franchises are a tremendous draw and guarantee a large amount of device lock-in for Nintendo, presently. They have made the games Nintendo produces a renewable resource, where oftentimes the company can re-release game content with a newly polished engine and be critically acclaimed for it.

If Nintendo gives Apple any amount of access to these franchises, then the lock-in is diluted and so, consequently, is the Nintendo brand.

Not to mention that in exchange for diluting their brand and sacrificing their lock-in, they will also be diminishing their profits by 30%.

This is effectively just handing it over to Apple even though there is no obvious marketing or distribution advantage to having their applications available on iOS.

After all they'd lose from the arrangement, it almost feels ludicrous to suggest that Nintendo pay Apple for the honor of diminishing its brand, don't you think?