BBC and Nintendo Wii Partnership

Posted Thursday 10th April 2008 by Tom P in Uncategorized.

With complaints rife from ISPs that the BBC iPlayer service is at risk of overloading the dilapidated internet network by being too popular, news has arisen that the BBC are to team up with Nintendo and put the iPlayer on Wii Channels. The popularity of the iPlayer has been outstanding in terms of personal computer users; whilst this marks the first time that the service will be available on a games console.

The iPlayer service has believed to have streamed over 42 million programmes since last Christmas; showing just how popular on-demand television services are. The new deal will see Wii owners being able to access the iPlayer over the internet and stream ‘catch-up’ programmes directly to their television set. This move from the BBC comes after the service was made available for iPhone users last month. Clearly the BBC wants the iPlayer to be part of everyday life.

Both Microsoft and Sony will be fuming that aspirations to convert their consoles into entertainment hubs have been stymied by the broadcasting corporation. As the Wii is the highest selling console however, the move by the BBC is hardly surprising. The BBC has already gained the third most popular viewing service after UK and US YouTube, so the pairing is not only a shrewd business move but can also be seen as a consolidation of an already strong position.

This will not be the end of the BBC’s expansion into cyber space though; it is believed plans are already in place to make the service available on other devices such as handhelds. For the BBC it is about increasing their audience to new levels. This strategy may well be worth applause, but it is doubtful that the ISPs, with their already vociferous concerns over bandwidth will be pleased with the news.

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