Topic: Why did Nintendo never remove region lock on 3DS?

The launch of the Switch being region free shows Nintendo understands that region locking was a wildly unpopular thing. And I have read that hackers have been able to remove the region lock - suggesting that it is purely a software lock. Physically I can find no differences between my Japanese and North American New Nintendo 3DS units.

If random hackers can do it - surely Nintendo could have, so I have to wonder why they didn't. Especially since they made the right choice in making the Switch region free. I would think that updating the 3DS's OS to remove region locking would have been a good way to prolong sales for a few more years. Or at least be a nice nod to their loyal fanbase.

Iwata said back in the day that it could technically be done, but that there were "hurdles" preventing it now that the systems have already been released locked. I would be curious what those "hurdles" are. Perhaps contracts in different regions, price setting for software was not established to meet the open model, etc....

@JohnBlackstar Ah, contracts and pricing issues aren't things I had considered. I was purely thinking from a software and hardware perspective. I suppose that they would need to get different sorts of licensing done and changes to the business model etc...