Nintendo to offer video service for Wii
updated 11:15 am EST, Fri December 26, 2008
Nintendo Wii Video Service
Nintendo on Christmas Day said it would start offering videos for the Wii, marking the first time the device will have readily available programming. The deal will see ad firm Dentsu help produce new videos that will be available solely online. Adding videos will turn the Wii into a "fun area for communication" between family members, Nintendo says in its official statement regarding the plan.
Content pricing has yet to be chosen but may include a mixture of free and pay-only titles in contrast to a show like Sony's Qore, which outside of promos is available only as a paid show for PlayStation 3 owners. The Wii service will launch next year in Nintendo's home country of Japan, though the company is said contemplating a launch in other countries.
Video appears at a crucial point for the Wii, which topped one million sales in a single week earlier this month and yet which has no conventional optical disc drive or online video service to challenge Microsoft and Sony. The latter two both give away free trailers and other short videos but also have full movie stores for buying or renting titles.
