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Online shopping comes to Wii in Japan November 1
Nintendo's Wii no Ma Channel currently provides videos to Wii users in Japan. During an investors presentation, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata introduced plans to add an online shopping component to the service. On November 1, three department store companies and Nintendo will launch the new Wii no Ma Shopping portal, which will carry goods from those department stores in addition to exclusive items like stickers and stamps with Mii images on them. "In addition to exclusive commodities only available at Wii-no-Ma," Iwata said, "there will always be more than 10,000 items to choose from, including foods, daily commodities, fashion items and furniture." Iwata has high hopes for the shopping service: "Wii is a game console which can be enjoyed by any member of a family regardless of age, gender and gaming experiences, and by deploying services that are unique to Wii with such characteristics, we are trying to make it even more useful for facilitating communication between people," he said. "If we can maintain the high active-use ratio of Wii through that process, people will keep using Wii as a game console. Overall, we are also hopeful that we will be able to increase the social acceptance of video games, which is one of our long-term goals." Don't expect to buy stuff through your Wii: the Wii no Ma Channel remains unavailable outside of Japan.
Wii No Ma trademarked in U.S.
Since the day Nintendo's video on demand service Wii No Ma first escaped Satoru Iwata's lips, there's been speculation about it coming to North America. Broke My Controller has the latest (though still circumstantial) evidence in the form of several Wii No Ma trademarks made in the U.S. earlier this month. We had hoped Nintendo would confirm the service's North American arrival during today's media summit, but alas, it was not to be. Seems will just to have to keep getting our fast food coupons from the newspaper like everybody else. [Thanks, J. Lopez]
Wii pay-per-view programming introduced in Japan
Not only are we still waiting for the TV Guide Channel that Japanese Wii users have been indulging in for the better part of two years, but now Variety is reporting that Nintendo has teamed up with a dozen corporate partners to tease us with a Japanese pay-per-view service for the console. Premiering last Saturday, Wii no Ma (Wii's Room) currently has 120 titles, including episodes of Sesame Street and Pocket Monsters, available for prices ranging from ¥30 - ¥500 ($.35 - $5.63). According to Variety, titles can also be viewed on your Nintendo DSi handheld, a device known for its sonority and large, appealing display. No word yet on when we can enjoy a Stateside version, but we'll let you know as soon as we hear something. In the meantime, there's always PlayOn.
Iwata introduces the Wii no Ma video service
The Wii no Ma Channel, Nintendo's own ad-supported video service, starts in Japan tomorrow. Nintendo seems to think pretty highly of its creation -- not only did president Satoru Iwata record a 25-minute speech about the service, but Nintendo reportedly sent translations of Iwata's speech to some English-language sites. This unusual practice has us thinking we could see our own version of the Wii no Ma Channel soon.Iwata's presentation offered a few details on the new service. According to Eurogamer's summary, Nintendo will begin the service with only a small amount of original content, but that Japanese broadcasters now see the service as "not hostile" and will provide content soon. "It might seem unprecedented to launch a video broadcasting service with such limited programs," said Iwata about the approach (which should be familiar to users of the Virtual Console or WiiWare), "but from other viewpoint, it turns out that good programs can easily stand out. We are going to increase it gradually." The advertising portion, relegated to an area inside the channel's living room houseplant, presents 12 screens to the viewer, allowing viewers to choose the advertising and offers they see, rather than interrupting programming for ads. This is the part of the service that allows coupons to be sent to the DSi. Other events happening in the room include visits from celebrity Mii "concierges" -- like Einstein, seen above. Viewers can rate and recommend these visits to friends, who can experience them via the Wii Message Board. More screens of the service are available at the Wii no Ma site.
Japan getting Wii video service May 1st, complete with DSi connectivity
We haven't been hearing a whole lot about the planned video distribution service for the Wii as of late, but looks like folks in Japan will soon be able to try it out first hand, as the service is set to launch in the country on May 1st. Dubbed the "Wii no Ma Channel," the service is rolling out with a little help from advertising firm Denstu, and includes both free and paid content, as well as some other various services and special offers from sponsors. Even more interesting, however, is word that a free DSi app will launch alongside the service, which will let you download video from the Wii to the DS, and even download coupons from advertisers, which can then be scanned directly from the screen. Head on past the break for a quick video overview -- which, of course, doesn't include any word of a launch 'round here.
Wii video service launches in Japan May 1, features DSi connectivity
Nintendo has launched the Japanese site for the "Wii no Ma Channel," the video service the company is launching with advertising producer Dentsu. The site offers a launch date for the free channel: May 1. A series of videos on the site helps explain all of the slightly weird features.The channel takes the form of a family room, around which up to eight Miis from one system can gather. Clicking on the room's TV accesses the video download service, which will include both free and paid content. No programming has been announced yet, though one of the videos after the break uses nature show footage as an example. Clicking on a houseplant will take users to the sponsor area, where they can find free trials of services and special offers from advertisers.The Wii no Ma Channel is also usable on the DSi, via a free app called Dokodemo Wii no Ma (Anywhere Wii no Ma). This app allows users to download video from the Wii to the DS, as well as sponsor coupons. In the video, a coupon for a fast-food restaurant is downloaded to the DSi, to be scanned from the screen![Via Andriasang]
Iwata: Nintendo considering Wii to DS video-on-demand
During an interview with the Wall Street Journal (registration required), Nintendo president Satoru Iwata hinted that the company's Wii no Ma Channel, intended to bring video-on-demand to its latest console, may be extended to allow video content transfers to Nintendo DS for viewing on-the-go. "If the Wii and the DS are connected, it should be possible to download video through the Wii and take it with you on the DS," Iwata told the Journal, explaining that, "When the service begins, you'll see how we're going to do it differently in a Nintendo-like way. There are a lot of on-demand video services, so there's no reason to do the same thing, so we're going to do something different."Iwata also indicated an overseas version of the service could happen, saying, "We'll start the service in Japan, and if it does well, we'd like to take it overseas."[Via Nintendo Everything]
Hollywood executive expects streaming movies, TV on Wii this year
Lionsgate's president of digital media, Curt Marvis, believes that streaming movies and TV will be available on the Wii this year. It doesn't really sound like a strong belief, or one that he can back up with any evidence: "I think when we see the Wii come into the market with the ability to stream movies," Marvis told The Cut Scene, "which I think is maybe going to happen as soon as this year, I think that's going to be a big marketplace for digital distribution."So when, and if, that does happen, Lionsgate is on board. The Cut Scene points out that Marvis does refer to the Wii streaming movies as opposed to downloading them, which suggests that he may be familiar enough with the platform to understand its limitations.Of course, it is a fact that streaming TV is coming to the Wii, both in the form of Nintendo's own "Wii no Ma Channel," which will provide original content from Nintendo, and Fujisoft's Minna no Theater Wii, whose offerings seem limited to content of Japanese origin, like anime and Ultraman. It's possible Lionsgate could be expecting to make a deal with Fujisoft, or that another service is imminent. Of course, it's also possible that he's guessing there will be a Wii movie service this year because he wants there to be.
'Minna no Theater' streaming video service could come to the US this year
Fujisoft's Minna no Theater Wii was the first Wii-exclusive video content delivery service to be announced -- and it'll be the first to be released, if it makes its January 27 date. The service is set to provide animated content like Astro Boy and Transformers, on a rental basis in which Wii Points buy a certain title for a certain amount of time.Fujisoft was at CES (!) and told GameCyte that they are planning on bringing the WiiWare video service to the US. "We can't quite tell at the moment," he said, "But if the negotiations are a success, maybe within the year." Of course, they'll have to compete with Nintendo's video service here like they will in Japan -- and, as GameCyte points out, it's Nintendo of America they're negotiating with. They'll have to convince Nintendo that Minna no Theater isn't a threat to their own offerings. However, since Nintendo plans to produce original content, and Fujisoft's is based on licensed anime, it seems like there is plenty of room for both.GameCyte also got a demo of the service at CES -- read their impressions, and see video of the service in Ultra-action, here.
Impending video service worries Japanese TV establishment
There must really be something to this Nintendo/Dentsu "Wii no Ma Channel," the video service announced last week. Times Online calls it a "television channel" featuring "a family- oriented blizzard of cartoons, "brain-training" quizzes, cookery, educational and other lifestyle shows." In other words, not just occasional offerings.The prospect of a Wii-based television channel apparently has traditional television channels worried. According to the Times, a Fuji TV executive called the possibility of Nintendo media dominance "the stuff of television producers' nightmares", expressing fears that Wii-based programming could cut into prime-time viewership for Japanese television.Thanks, unnamed Fuji Television executive! We're much more excited about this Channel now.[Via GoNintendo]
