Wii U won't support DVD or Blu-Ray playback... your thoughts?

[HappySqurriel]

d21lewis said:

IamAwsome said:

Euphoria14 said:
Didn't read the article but from what I see in the OP is Nintendo saying that the reason is due to the disc used?


I remember Wii not having playback for DVD also but that was just due to Nintendo being cheap because a quick soft mod enabled DVD playback on mine and I am sure the same will enable at least DVD playback on the Wii U.

It wasn't because of prices,  it was because of Blu-Ray market saturation. Nintendo initially planned to put a DVD player in the Wii, but took it out for the same reason. 

And from what I understand, the Wii is totally capable of playing DVDs as is.  There was (and probably still is) a homebrew application for it.  Leaving out DVD playback was a design choice.

Most formats (CD, DVD, DVD-A, SACD, Blu-Ray, etc.) tend to have licensing fees associated with providing video/audio playback and also force certain rules on how your hardware has to operate to be considered compliant. While the added cost will not make or break a system, and the requirements may not ensure piracy is possible, they do make it more difficult to produce a cost effective and piracy free system.