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Nintendo Ends Swapnote 3DS Message Sharing with SpotPass

Nintendo announced that it shut down the ability for Swapnote 3DS software users to send and receive messages via SpotPass as of Thursday at 10 p.m. EDT. Swapnote's SpotPass function and Special Notes services were terminated for all regions where they were offered.

Nintendo provided the following explanation:

Nintendo has learned that some consumers, including minors, have been exchanging their friend codes on Internet bulletin boards and then using Swapnote (known as Nintendo Letter Box in other regions) to exchange offensive material. Nintendo has been investigating ways of preventing this and determined it is best to stop the SpotPass feature of Swapnote because it allows direct exchange of photos and was actively misused.

The company also apologized to "consumers who have been using this service responsibly" and reminded users about the 3DS system's Parental Control features.

Swapnote software that allows users to create and share hand-written messages and drawings launched in December 2011.

[Via Siliconera, Kotaku]