Wii getting Netflix streaming?

Source: A report on Joystiq citing a Netflix user survey.What we heard: Last year, Microsoft's "New Xbox Experience" introduced a host of new features to the Xbox 360, including a new interface, avatars, and group chat. But perhaps the best received of the NXE additions was the integration of...

Source: A report on Joystiq citing a Netflix user survey.

What we heard: Last year, Microsoft's "New Xbox Experience" introduced a host of new features to the Xbox 360, including a new interface, avatars, and group chat. But perhaps the best received of the NXE additions was the integration of Netflix, which allowed more than 1 million of the online rental service's subscribers to stream films through the console.

Now it seems Netflix might begin offering its online catalog to Wii users, according to the Joystiq report. The gaming blog cites a Netflix user survey for the information, with the rental service apparently in search of feedback on one possible implementation of its streaming video program for Nintendo's console.

The described program would require member Wii owners to run a "Netflix Instant Streaming Disc" on their system and would provide access to more than 12,000 movies and TV shows. A previous survey proposed a similar system, but with a $9.99 initial charge attached for the start-up disc.

It's no secret that Netflix wants to get its goods to subscribers' homes any way it can. An April job listing on the company's site sought an "Engineering Leader--Gaming Platforms" to direct "a small technology team to rapidly prototype and iterate on a variety of platforms." (Emphasis added.) The job description also said the ideal candidate would have experience on "one or more gaming consoles."

Even if Netflix wants to partner up with Nintendo, there may be other obstacles to clear. For example, the company has plans to launch its own video streaming service, and Nintendo president Satoru Iwata promised it would be quite different. The executive also added that if the program's initial run in Japan were successful, Nintendo would likely take it overseas.

The official story: "We're always interested in expanding the Netflix streaming functionality, but Xbox 360 is the exclusive console for now."--Steve Swasey, Netflix vice president of corporate communications.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus that Netflix would like to stream games via the Wii. Bogus that it's a done deal just yet.

144 Comments

  • QWERTYCommander

    Posted Jul 7, 2009 4:59 pm PT

    A disc? Why not a Wii Channel? That's just unacceptable for this day and age.

  • sanim02

    Posted Jul 7, 2009 3:48 pm PT

    As if I'd care.. No offence but if I really want to stream movies, I'd rather go to blockbuster than get charged monthly by my internet provider. Yeah I'm not unlimited downloads and I have a Wii for casual fun otherwise it's all ps3 for sweet single player action.

  • Kbs64

    Posted Jul 6, 2009 3:46 pm PT

    Hoping

  • bobert_20

    Posted Jul 6, 2009 12:46 am PT

    huskerman34 I think people are losing faith in the PS3. Wii is doing the best out of all 3 systems and I don't think anything topped 360's natal this year at E3 and that got peoples attention brought onto the 360

  • huskerman34

    Posted Jul 5, 2009 8:48 am PT

    I hope to see this on the ps3 before the wii.

  • Excedra

    Posted Jul 3, 2009 11:17 pm PT

    thats good i guess

  • jjwalker9600

    Posted Jul 1, 2009 12:37 pm PT

    @hydrolix.. it seems to take a long time to download. I was use a wi-fi connection and certain movies were taking an awful long time. Maybe it might be faster if I was using a direct connection, but I never really took the time after the initial use.

  • Dgalmun

    Posted Jul 1, 2009 11:05 am PT

    I actually found some thing out about the wii that I forgot to put it in, the only problem is that the wii cannot play dvd's. My question is how the heck is nintendo gonna fix this problem when the wii may get netflix streaming.

  • Hydrolix

    Posted Jun 30, 2009 9:05 pm PT

    @jjwalker9600 Really? I use the streaming netflix all the time, it plays without a hitch and in HD? How can you not be impressed with that?

  • chrth

    Posted Jun 30, 2009 6:03 am PT

    'cuz you can't save any goddamn movie on"memory blocks"' -- you do know what the word 'streaming' means, right?

  • Fuzzy__Slipperz

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 9:47 pm PT

    @acemasta21
    Sony doesn't need to do anything. PS3 is compatible with Netflix with the help of Playon Media Server. The downside is that its $40 to fully have it. It lets you instantly stream Netlfix, Hulu, and Youtube from your PC.

  • D3A7HJ0K3R

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 2:57 pm PT

    like i said before, has to focus on better games, the condiut was a wannabe halo and sucked the hulks balls.

  • D3A7HJ0K3R

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 2:52 pm PT

    the wii couldn't handle this at all, the movies would either be suckish or require you to have some giant ass memory device. cuz you can't save any goddamn movie on"memory blocks"

  • acemasta21

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 1:47 pm PT

    ps3 coulda had it but sony decided to open their own video store

  • wiirkokonuts

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 11:53 am PT

    Why? Wii was not built to be a media center unlike the 360 and PS3, but just a honest gaming console. I ran out of memory on my Wii a long time ago, and I'm using a 1GB SD card now in it's place. Soon they will come out with more stuff, but I don't think the Wii's memory can keep up.

  • chappy_man

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 11:24 am PT

    makes sense to attempt the wii, with such a large install base the number of possible revenue venues is on the up and up with the platform

  • genfactor

    Posted Jun 29, 2009 9:43 am PT

    I keep seeing people say that the wii can't do HD. When you consider that Netflix doesn't stream HD to the 360 either, does it really matter? I've tried streaming HD through Netfllix to my 360 but it's still DVD quality. In a side by side comparison I doubt anyone will be able to tell the difference between wii and 360 Netflix because Netflix doesn' stream HD to consoles yet.

  • star77241

    Posted Jun 27, 2009 2:28 pm PT

    So we'd have to buy a DVD and put in the Wii? This is cool and all but if I have to actually get up and exchange the discs, then it kind of ruins it.

  • Quokimbo

    Posted Jun 27, 2009 8:41 am PT

    I would love to stream videos to my Wii. I would put the Wii in the bedroom, because the Wii has wi-fi, I have Netflix, wireless router, the 360 in the living room, and the Wii in the bedroom with Netflix on both. That would rocks the socks!!!

  • kade380

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 7:37 pm PT

    i dont thing the wii has enough memory for a video XD

  • shadowysea07

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 5:03 pm PT

    meh useless add ons for a useless system. if only nintendo would care about the hard core gamers DX. and even if they got netflix why would you want it on your wii? when you have a netflix account and can get the dvds instead? or watch it on your computer. plus you can't watch high def movies on a wii. i also doubt people would want to buy the stupid add on disc.

  • salvucci91

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 4:29 pm PT

    Why should I have to purchase a disc to stream movies I already pay a monthly fee for? Netflix on the 360 didn't cost a thing; shouldn't we simply be able to download a new channel for it?

  • PumpkinBoogie

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 3:05 pm PT

    @El Conrado--yeah, that's a good point you brought up...I had caught that too and thought it was kinda strange. You'd figure it'd be a lot easier to do the streaming without adding a extra step. But then again, maybe they can't do that because Nintendo could possibly have that idea already determined for their own movie streaming ideas so perhaps that's why Netflix can't do that for the Wii.

  • El_Conrado

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 9:12 am PT

    And my question is:

    If they would work this out, why would they need a "Netflix Instant Streaming Disc"? Wouldn't it be better to have a "Netflix Wii Channel"? Isn't that what channels are supposed to be for, adding features to the system?

  • El_Conrado

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 9:08 am PT

    cjasko94:
    "And why the F did nintendo not put a dvd player in the wii?!?!"

    Because it's pretty pointless to do so now?

    Think about it. Did you have a DVD player before you bought a Wii? I had 3.

    I now have 6 devices capable of DVD playback, just in my room, 4 of them attached to my HDTV, and only 1 has upsampling.

  • Melty123

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 8:50 am PT

    Whats best for the gamers.

  • cjasko94

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 7:49 am PT

    Hollywood Video FTW!
    I don't waste my time with these video rental websites. And why the F did nintendo not put a dvd player in the wii?!?!
    I mean ps2 had one. Dreamcast could have had one.

  • raghraghragh

    Posted Jun 26, 2009 4:34 am PT

    It'd probably be easier and cheaper to just rent the actual DVD.

  • Linkman0714

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 9:10 pm PT

    this doesnt make a difference to me...my wii just collects dust and will continue to do so until i get mario galaxy 2

  • atopp399

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 9:08 pm PT

    The Wii is the same resolution as a DVD player. Movies would look just as good as any movie you rent and watch on a regular DVD player which is what the majority of people own.

  • godzillavskong

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 9:07 pm PT

    I've been on the fence about adding this feature to my 360. I usually just media share through my Windows Media player and basically get any movie out through various social p2p torrents, but they arent' in HD, so that's where I've been thinking about trying Netflix.Does anyone know if the movies on Netflix are streamed to the 360 in full HD?

  • BtmnHatesRbn

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 7:23 pm PT

    Most users and people in general can't tell the difference from HDTV to regular, Mac from Windows, stereo from mono, etc. There are people who still think there's no reason to upgrade their PlayStation from 1995. So, quit complaining...never mind, I just remembered this site is full of Todd from Code Monkeys clones.

  • Saphire_Kitsune

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 5:04 pm PT

    -Celeste-: No, you must have a Netflix AND XBL gold account to stream movies. It stinks because I never play anything online on the xbox, so I'm shelling out cash for gold membership cards just to use a service that should already be free for me. -_-;

  • Saphire_Kitsune

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 4:57 pm PT

    That'd be cool! Though the wii system's graphics capabilities might make it a lower quality watch (which I personally wouldn't mind too much.) Watching netflix movies on the xbox 360's okay an' all, but running the system during movie length times can (and usually does) cause the system to heat up quite a bit without a fan. :/

  • Triton

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 3:32 pm PT

    Funny stuff. I'm sure all the movies you stream onto the high tech machine will have all the characters transformed into Mario franchise characters you. I can just see it now, nursing homes and the local VFW streaming movies...

  • hatieshorrer

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 3:06 pm PT

    @RazerBlade13

    Yeah Razer its like for example why make games for the PS2 if its competitors the GameCube and X-Box had better CPUs and better GPUs with better graphics. Or why make games on the PS if its competitors the N64 and Saturn had better graphics I could go on but theres no need to its obvious why they want to do this with the Wii over the other two competitors and theres 50million good reasons why.

  • RazerBlade13

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 1:33 pm PT

    Why Nintendo? The Wii's graphical capabilities are less than spectacular. If they aren't satisfied with just dominating Live, go over to PSN.

  • TQ_NintyNoE

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 12:38 pm PT

    What? Have you even seen the Wii with the Component cable plugged in? The quality is fantastic, it's full screen (no little borders), running at a smooth 60Htz too. If downloadable programmes were streamed onto the lil' machine, whether or not the consumer had the c-cable or not, it would be great quality.

  • cowmaster2k3 posted Jun 25, 2009 12:21 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    cowmaster2k3

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 12:21 pm PT (hide)

    Awesome! You get to relive the feeling of watching VHS tapes on your Wii! Nintendo gets the nostalgia nod once again!!!!

  • etai79

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 12:01 pm PT

    "wait....how do you know that nintendo won't do some update to support HD heck they fixed the memory problem with the 4.0 update but to tell you the truth i don't care for movies or netflix but it would be cool to watch movies."

    Because the Wii's video card struggles to put out a 480p resolution. Jumping up to 1280x720 would require ~4x the efficiency for the same 1:1 syncing to the TV. This **** ain't magic, you know.

  • starwa1ker

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:58 am PT

    Well I have an Xbox 360 but I think having a one-time activation fee is better than staying on Xbox Live Gold as I don't play online much.

  • etai79

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:58 am PT

    It's called a cable. They're about $5 for 15 feet on Newegg.

  • Metroid827

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:37 am PT

    I've already got Xbox, so no thanks.

  • jjwalker9600

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:37 am PT

    I tried the Netflix streaming on the Xbox and I wasn't that impressed with it.

  • Shadow_Dog

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:36 am PT

    I'm pretty sure the Wii doesn't have a DVD player, so lets work on that, shall we?

  • ace-of-spades93

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:26 am PT

    oh well im british so i still havent got it on the xbox

  • iucidium

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:20 am PT

    @hydrolix: blame sonys movie monopoly.

  • nintendoboy16

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:17 am PT

    The Wii dosen't need this, so no thanks.

  • GenkaiSIX

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:17 am PT

    Now why can't Sony look into something like this. I already subscribe to Netflix, why not integrate the service into PSN. Good for Wii though.

  • iucidium

    Posted Jun 25, 2009 11:16 am PT

    Wii disney streaming video service - or only Nintendo related videos to swell their already bloated egos, thats why their E3 show sucked

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