Nintendo’s North American teleconference went ahead as planned this morning, underlining a refreshingly bold confidence in its DS launch strategy. Obviously encouraged by the largely positive reaction to the machine’s pricing, and capitalising on the uncertainty of PSP details, Nintendo made the announcement that it was upping the shipping stakes. It had initially planned to ship 3.5 million units by the end of March next year; now that figure has been raised to 4 million. That reflects a certain chipper spirit in Kyoto: but one which ubiquitous industry analyst P.J. McNealy believes is understated nonetheless.

Nintendo will certainly be hoping that the 4 million unit projection can be exceeded, not least because it’s planning the biggest marketing spend in its history. Speaking on behalf of the marketing department, George Harrison confirmed that $40 million would be splurged in a 6 month multimedia frenzy – a massive advertising sundae liberally sprinkled with 12,000 playable demo units.

Other previously announced details were also reinforced, with a confirmation that the DS would arrive with Pictochat built-in and a playable demo of Metroid Prime: Hunters thrown into the bargain. More details of software pricing and release dates are expected to follow on October 7th, at which point the SPOnG town crier will be ringing bells rather loudly.