Nintendo DSi Shop Looking For Non-Game Apps?

Nintendo have apparently been pushing developers to create small-scale applications that could be distributed through the DSi Shop, once it launches in Europe and the US.  According to one unnamed developer, the suggestion came at the Nintendo Developer Conference in London this week.

"Nintendo is keen to have developers offering all kinds of software once the DSi store fully launches for access in Europe and America ... Given the advanced functions in the DSi, such as the microphone and camera, the company told us that there are a variety of opportunities for a variety of apps, both in a games sense and a non-games sense, that we could offer" unnamed developer

Nintendo have previously denied that they consider the DSi Shop any sort of rival to other platform-specific download systems such as Apple's iPhone App Store or the Android Market.  However this week they promoted not only game-style downloads and add-ons, but standalone software that could take advantage of the DSi's multimedia capabilities.

Some are now speculating that Nintendo president Satoru Iwata will announce the newly-broadened store during his Game Developers Conference keynote next week.  The Nintendo DSi console itself launches on April 5th in the US.

[via TechTicker]