Nintendo TVii Service Announced

Shortly after revealing the release date and launch price of the Wii U console, Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime unveiled Nintendo TVii (ugh, that name). The service is Nintendo’s attempt to catch up to Microsoft, Sony, and even Apple in the content integration game.

The demonstration at today’s New York press conference showed that the Wii U GamePad will act as a very, very smart-remote for all the TV and content-viewing options you can handle, ranging from Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime Instant Video, all the way to your DVR and live television broadcast. Just how the Wii U console will allow for live TV watching wasn’t ever addressed during the conference. I assume that connecting via broadband will open up certain cable providers’ different services, much like the Xbox 360’s Xfinity app that links up with Comcast subscribers. But that app never allows for LIVE television viewing, only what’s being re-broadcast via the app, right? Furthermore, I get my cable through a wire in the back of the TV…so will there be a co/ax input in the back of the console? Questions.

Another few questions came up in my mind when the demo revealed how sports games would be viewed: will there be integration with the various different pro-sports networks? Will I be able to access MLB.TV on the Wii U like I could on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3? Will there be the NFL Sunday Ticket, which is currently only on the PS3 console? What about the forthcoming NBA and NHL apps? None of this was covered, leading me to believe that any sports you want to watch will be bundled in with the live TV thing…but again, no real answers on how that happens.

If nothing else, Fils-Aime did say that the Nintendo TVii service will come free of charge to all console owners, and that there will be no monthly fees associated with it. So that’s pretty good, right?

Either way, I’m excited to see what this thing really is, and how it’ll all work when it launches.