This is the best, most exciting news I've heard about Nintendo in the past two years. This totally eclipses everything that went on in the past two E3 showings. This actual talks about Nintendo's future and with the changes they are making it seems like a really bright one with a lot to look forward to.

With Miyamoto stepping down, EAD will still be great hands under Takashi Tezuka. Seems as though Miyamoto wants to be more hands-on with game development again as opposed to just supervising and that's alright with me.

This sounds great to me! Fresh blood pumping out the older titles with a fresh spin and having Miyamoto working with younger talent on new IPs is a great move. Those that he is working with will one day be the great designers they can't do without, it's amazing that they've prepared this well. I have absolute confidence this will only mean good things!

Best Nintendo news I've heard in a long time!

Realistically I still expect a short term drop in quality for some games, such as the Zelda series, although with Fujibayashi working along side Aonuma there is still hope.

But the benefits clearly out-way the costs. There have been too many examples of Miyamoto upending tea-tables, causing delays in schedule and budget increases, only to eventually come up with something that isn't necessarily better than the original design the developers had in mind.
I eagerly await to see their unsupervised output, now that they will be able to stretch their legs a little.

Furthermore, giving Miyamoto the opportunity to actually return full time to the role of developer, rather than doing it from the back seat as has been more common in the last decade, will surely bring forth many original ideas and novel concepts, even more so if the main focus of his team(s) will be smaller projects.

Another concern that will sooner or later arise, is the effect his absence will have on creation of killer-app type games such as Wii Fit, but this is without a doubt something Nintendo have planned for ahead of time.

Folks should not get too ahead of themselves. This is speculation built upon fact and possibly other speculation. There are sources listed but without citation, so the information cannot be verified. I am not saying some or all of this will or won't happen. But right now it is just a NeoGAF posted rumor.

While Nikkei has generally proven to be a good source, Wired had the whole "Miyamoto is retiring" saga (which could be the source of his stepping down from EAD) and the Guardian has been hit-or-miss.

Finally, it is interesting both here and on NEoGAF how quickly people seem to be ready to get rid of Miyamoto.

Mike from Morgantown

I don't think people are eager to get rid of him, but rather to make better use of his many talents.

Miyamoto is a lateral thinker, somebody who loves challenging conventions and discovering deep insight in seemingly mundane things. He's a creative genius, but, as he himself has said on many occasions, not neccesarily the best manager or collaborator. 

There was an Iwata Asks where MIyamoto addressed this issue, saying he himself never really had a boss at Nintendo, and thus doesn't really know how to be one.

Allowing other developers in the company to shine is only half of the picture, letting Miyamoto loose on his own low-risk projects is every bit as exciting. 

They should throw a party for Miyamoto-san when he hits 60.

I'm calling it now!

Miyamoto's first project in 2013 will be a new F-Zero for 3DS available only on the eshop!

Goes along with many of his recent statements about the series being better suited to digital, and wanting to see it in 3D, etc.

Your comments are reasoned and well thought out.  Not all responses had/have this quality.

Best news!

Love the word expansion
Miyamoto stepping down is only natural. Even the master has to pass the [master] sword foward sometime
And Sakurai as a Nintendo employee? Great, probably the best talent around in the industry, imo.