Wii to receive dedicated iPlayer channel

November 13, 2009 6:38AM PST

By Mark Walton, Senior Staff Writer - Reviews

BBC promises an "improved viewing experience" from iPlayer integration into the Wii home menu.

Recently, console manufacturers have been racing to add non-gaming features to their machines. Microsoft's upcoming dashboard update will add Facebook, Twitter, and Last.fm integration to the Xbox 360 on November 17, while Sony is rumoured to be adding Facebook support to the PlayStation 3. Sony also recently integrated BBC iPlayer into the video channel of the PlayStation 3 XMB, an addition that proved so popular, the console is now the second most popular method for watching iPlayer, accounting for 10 percent of all usage.

This success was clearly noted by Nintendo, who today announced that the Wii will be given its own dedicated iPlayer channel on the main home menu. Though iPlayer was previously accessible via the Wii's Web browser, the BBC promises that the integrated player will offer a "faster, high-quality, and improved viewing experience."

The BBC iPlayer launched in 2007, and the service has grown to receive 75 million requests per month for radio and television programmes. The service originally rolled out to the PS3 and Wii toward the end of 2008, paving the way for its availability on over 20 devices.

The iPlayer channel will be available for free in the UK via the Wii Shop channel on November 18.

By Mark Walton, Senior Staff Writer - Reviews

Writer, riff maker, purveyor of fine foods. Mark currently spends his days trying to overcome his small (large) obsession with high-top trainers and mobile games. He's known to respond well to Long Island Iced Tea, falafels, and karaoke, but not necessarily in that order.

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15 comments

Newest | Oldest

geoff-uk123

The Iplayer on the Wii is a great feature. Better than the PS3 version.

lee1823

iplayer is awesome. Me and my girlfriend live together and NEVER watch TV. we're usually busy doing other things (like gaming!) and want to watch shows when were ready. Iplayer lets you watch what you want, when you want, in decent quality too. I only really like watching documentaries and comedy so it suits me fine. to those in the US... i wouldnt worry about having to pay for it.... i really can't see that happening. You can get it online through your PC for free right? so it would be a stupid move for them to make you pay.

stocko2k

my friends in the usa can get iplayer on thier ps3 so the wii channel should work

wiidsduelpack

Just don't take a lot of memory though. The Internet channel was like 203 memory blocks so I didn't download it. Hope it it is less than 50 for it. iPlayer channel doesn't say its free for NA. Maybe we have have to pay for it.

LittleDuck

They should've done that ages ago. Ah well.

kavadias1981

@scouserfuller9 Like?

mikal91

bout time, ma bro bin avin it for ages on his ps3. the wii browser dont actully play iplayer so dnno wat "Though iPlayer was previously accessible via the Wii's Web browser," is as all i ever got was the notice that it was coming.

scouserfuller9

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

fabz_95 ranger

Good news, BBC iPlayer is great.

shadowysea07

@scouserfuller9 thats what the bbc channel, hulu, and youtube are for. and thats if you actually like shows from the uk.

scouserfuller9

@Solidsnake - The reason you should care is because you'll be missing some decent TV shows!

cjek

It will be UK only, just as the normal BBC iPlayer is. You have to pay for BBC services is why, and UK residents pay via the TV licence. Maybe if the BBC allowed people in other countries to pay for the UK services, they'd have much more money and produce even more great content. Just a thought.

Solidsnake13_2

Basically this stuff is all for the UK users who have PS3 and Wii. So who would really care of NA isn't getting it?

Marvi_I

@ chappy_man I don't think so seeing as its BBC

chappy_man

so this doesn't get to happen in NA then?

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