Source: The examiner

If you were one of the few people who actually tried to bring the Wii online to play with friends, you'll without a doubt remember Friend Codes.  Instead of typing in a Gamertag, you were forced to type in a long string of incoherent letters and numbers, almost as if redeeming an Xbox Live card.  This then gave you access to play with your friends.  It wasn't ideal, but it was Nintendo's way of making the system family friendly so you weren't constantly bombarded with 12 year olds talking about your mom.

For better or for worse, this system is continuing in the Wii U.  Reggie Fils-Aime tells us that the system will likely be refined, but refused to give out details.  He explains that the system is going to be simplified for the new system, but doesn't give concrete evidence as to how.  Perhaps they are trying to iron out the details, or perhaps he just doesn't want to talk about the negatives of his console.  Here is his exact quote:

“There are friend codes, but it’s not the existing friend code system. What do I mean by that? Here’s what I mean: you will be able to identify people as friends and have a certain level of interaction vs. a different level of interaction for the more general population. The method by which you identify someone as a friend is a lot simpler than what’s happening today with Friend Codes.”

Hopefully, the 'simpler method' means these codes won't be as long, or you have the ability to create your own code.  Obviously, it's still not as easy as a Gamertag, but Nintendo has never been a company to follow the beaten path.

The Wii U looks like it should have better online capabilities than its predecessor, but don't get your hopes up.  Nintendo is yet to make a console that has multiplayer on par with the likes of Microsoft and Sony, but maybe this time they will learn from their past mistakes.

Hopefully more information will leak out in the coming days, as journalists continue posting their opinions about E3 on the internet

Hmmm personally I think this is dreadfull news because I hated the wii friend codes, and I am sure most people will agree with me on this.