Apple CEO Cook visits Nintendo headquarters in Kyoto

Tim Cook seems to be enjoying his visit to Kyoto.

Apple Inc.’s chief executive officer was in Japan’s ancient capital on Thursday, meeting with Nintendo Co. executives at the gaming company’s headquarters.

Cook’s visit follows last month’s unveiling of “Super Mario Run” for Apple devices, the first time Nintendo’s popular game franchise will be available on mobile gadgets. Cook spent about an hour meeting with Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima and Super Mario co-creator Shigeru Miyamoto, said Nintendo spokesman Kenichi Sugimoto. Cook later tweeted a photo of himself playing the new title with Miyamoto and game designer Takashi Tezuka.

Shares of Nintendo rose almost 60 percent his year, compared with a 13 percent decline in the Topix index.

Investors have cheered Nintendo’s embrace of smartphones, after years of sticking to a strategy of pairing its software with its own hardware. For Apple, adding exclusive content like Nintendo’s iconic plumber is one way to boost the appeal of its devices against those from Samsung Electronics Co. and other smartphone makers. Super Mario Run is scheduled to be released in December. Nintendo has not said when the app will be available for Android devices.

Cook also took time to visit Kyoto’s iconic Fushimi Inari Taisha Shinto shrine.

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