While the iPhone is emerging as one of Nintendo’s biggest credible threats, that’s not the way the Japanese gaming company sees it, or is at least willingly to admit. Its president Satoru Iwata has been making the rounds to support the launch of its DSi gaming device in the US and Europe, and in an event in Tokyo covered by the FT.com, he repeats his assertion that mobile phones are no real threat to the company. More specifically, he said that the potential competition from mobile phones “has been around for years” and that Nintendo could stay ahead as long as it continued to innovate. Iwata also dismissed the possibility that Nintendo would release a console that could be used as a mobile phone—“unless it could do so without the need for a monthly subscription.”

SEE ALSO: Is The iPhone A Bigger Game Changer Than The Wii?

Is this a mistake? Is the iPhone more enticing to consumers because of its phone capability? Not necessarily, if you look at Apple’s other success, the iPod Touch. Through a Wi-Fi connection, users can still download and play games and other applications, while not having the ability to make calls. It will be interesting to see if the launch of the DSi Shop—Nintendo’s version of the App Store for the DSi—will help retain and attract new customers.

Of course, a lot depends on what actually turns up at the DSi shop, and if it can rival the App Store in terms of games offerings, but maybe there is room for mobile content without the phone. Meanwhile, IGN has an indepth examination of the iPhone versus the DSi here.