Wii Wants TV

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You want your Wii TV? You got it.

Reuters reports that Nintendo (OTC BB: NTDOY.PK) is working with Japan's Dentsu to bring video to the Wii video game console. And not just existing programming a la Hulu, but new video. Think of it as a professional-grade YouTube tricked out with playlists.

Assuming the higher-ups didn't conceive this idea over a blowfish-sushi-and-sake-bombs lunch near headquarters -- I've seen worse -- there's logic to the plan. Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is partnering with Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) to stream movies through the Xbox 360. Sony's (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 3 plays Blu-ray discs.

Video game consoles are the new entertainment centers, in other words.

I simply wonder whether Nintendo is doing enough. New content is great, but will it sell? It had better; Nintendo and Dentsu will charge Wii users a premium for some shows, while ads will follow others.

In either case, most programming will be cartoons and other entertainment, the Nikkei Business Daily reports. That's sufficiently different from what Microsoft and Sony offer today, and it could play well with Nintendo's anime-happy audience.

And let's not forget history. Nintendo has created hit content before with its games, many of which involve engaging plotlines, and its DSi handheld is a budding platform that's just a chip away from being a smartphone. Few firms short of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) have more experience at creating integrated experiences than Nintendo does.

Game on.

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