Nintendo had seen record revenues, net sales, and profits in 2009 as a result of the release of the Nintendo DS and Wii in 2004 and 2006, respectively,[4][5][6] but in Nintendo's subsequent years, its revenues had declined.[7][8] The company had posted its first loss as a video game company in 2012 prior to the Wii U's introduction that year and would have similar losses in the following years due to the console's poor uptake.[9] The New York Times attributed Nintendo lowering financial forecasts in 2014 to weak hardware sales against mobile gaming.[10] Previously, the company had been hesitant about this market, with then-president Satoru Iwata considering that they would "cease to be Nintendo" and lose their identity if they attempted to enter it.[11] About three years prior to the Switch's announcement, Iwata, Tatsumi Kimishima, Genyo Takeda, and Shigeru Miyamoto crafted a strategy for revitalizing Nintendo's business model, which included approaching the mobile market, creating new hardware, and "maximizing [their] intellectual property".[12] Prior to his death, Iwata was able to secure a business alliance with Japanese mobile provider DeNA to develop mobile titles based on Nintendo's first-party franchises, believing this approach would not compromise their integrity.[13][14] Following Iwata's death in July 2015, Kimishima was named as president of Nintendo, while Miyamoto was promoted to the title of "Creative Fellow".[12]