Nintendo Co became the first of the world's biggest computer and electronics manufacturers to score zero points in a report by Greenpeace International measuring company policies on use of toxic chemicals and recycling.
The Kyoto-based maker of Wii game consoles was criticized for lacking policies on eliminating the use of vinyl plastics and brominated flame retardants and its limited recycling of used consoles and products. The company, included in the report for the first time, scored zero points in a total of nine categories, Greenpeace said.
"We observe regulations in the countries where we're operating," Nintendo spokesman Yasuhiro Minagawa said.
He could not confirm whether Greenpeace previously contacted the company to obtain data.
The Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics, published for the sixth time on Monday, ranks the world's 18 biggest electronics makers according to information published on the companies' Web sites. The survey is aimed at pressuring companies to take responsibility for their products' entire life-cycle, the report said.
Microsoft Corp, maker of the Xbox 360 game console, ranks 16 among the 18 companies surveyed because it does not plan to eliminate toxic chemicals from products until 2011. The Redmond, Washington-based company was ranked "bad" or "partially bad" in all four recycling categories.
"Microsoft is committed to environmental sustainability and has many programs and policies in place to lessen our footprint," said Charlene Chian, a Singapore-based spokeswoman for Microsoft, in an e-mail. "In our consumer electronics business, we comply with and exceed all environmental guidelines and regulations."
Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications Ltd, the world's fourth-largest maker of mobile phones, topped the rankings for its January deadline for eliminating brominated flame retardants and recycling of older mobile phones. The company's handsets have been free from vinyl plastics since last year, Greenpeace said.
Espoo, Finland-based Nokia Oyj fell to ninth in the latest survey from first because of deficiencies in its policies for taking back older products in Thailand, Russia and Argentina during the survey period, the environmental group said.
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