Apple builds gaming PR team: Assault on Nintendo/Sony incoming?

Earlier this month Don Reisinger suggested Apple could easily make itself the next gaming giant; now it seems the company is taking steps toward doing just that. According to MCV, Apple has poached Nintendo UK head of communications Robert Saunders, who will be heading PR efforts for apps across iPad, iPhone and iPod.

News that Saunders was to depart Nintendo broke last week, with the exec having been at the Japanese gaming firm for seven years. Among his responsibilities have been launching the Wii and DS.

Meanwhile, Activision PR Nick Grange has also been snapped up by Apple, with his new role supposedly being "focussed on iPad hardware." Nobody is saying whether either exec will be driving gaming at the company, but given Apple's ongoing push to position its range as – among other things – replacements for dedicated games handhelds, their expertise would seem ideally suited to such a strategy.

[via Engadget]