Nintendo has abruptly shut down the SpotPass functionality for Swapnote on 3DS, noting that players were “exchanging their friend codes on Internet bulletin boards” and then using SwapNote to “exchange offensive material.” SpotPass allowed players to exchange photos directly with others using the app.
“Nintendo always wants to provide a positive experience for all consumers and limit the risk of any inappropriate activity or misuse of a service,” Nintendo noted in an announcement on its site. “We feel it is important on this occasion to take this action.”
The service was stopped as of 7:00 p.m. PT yesterday, and is effective for all regions. Nintendo said it will “work to ensure more consumers are aware of our Parental Control features” for the handheld system, pointing out that minors were among those exchanging offensive material.
“We are very sorry for any inconvenience to the many consumers who have been using this service responsibly; however this decision was made considering the point that many minors also use this feature of Swapnote,” the company added.
