If everyone else can do it without going down, why would Nintendo?

Nintendo was saying the same things back in 2000 as well, because it simply is a question they get repeatedly asked. Nintendo wasn't close to going third party back then, but they were asked the question all the same. Nintendo isn't close to going third party now either, so it really only speaks volumes about the people who keep asking this question.

Probably because poor Nintendo got badgered by the industry and was told that the Wii success doesn't count, because they don't have real third party support. But Nintendo would like to be accepted by the industry.

Probably also because Nintendo's senior developers were shown that they were wrong for over a decade with the games they desired to make not gaining additional traction despite a much higher installed base than previously.

So two birds with one stone: Proper third party support sells consoles and if the console sells, then Nintendo's developers can make the games they want to make, because they won't be obligated to make games that sell consoles aside from maybe a few. From that point of view it makes sense to arrive at the Wii U and ditch the Wii as fast as possible.

So it´s about making games for themselves?...are they living in La-La land, burying their heads in the sand and pretending that developing games isn´t a business?

Yeah, which is why I always have lower opinions of people who bring up the idea of Nintendo going multiplatform. IT HAS NEVER WORKED FOR ANY MAJOR CONSOLE HARDWARE MANUFACTURER IN THE PAST, why on Earth would anyone with knowledge of the industry think it would 'save' or help Nintendo?

People thinking the Nintendo IPs would still sell gangbusters if spread out on multiple platforms or Nintendo would be able to keep the quality while working on someone else's hardware really just show case how uninformed they are when it comes to Nintendo's success or how the current industry works. Even if the Wii U is doomed, Nintendo still has enough push from the 3DS and cash from their most recent successes (Wii and DS) that they could still release new hardware by 2015-16 that (Assuming like always tech costs decrease for certain chipsets and technology) is closer if not a match for PS4 and Xbox One.

Nintendo can be like Apple (because they already were like them), so no need for optimism. Selling everything they sell at a profit shouldn't be a challenge for Nintendo with their future dedicated gaming systems. The sole reason why the Wii U is so bad is that Nintendo adopted Sony's and Microsoft's model.

Based on the above, why would you think that being even more like Sony and Microsoft would be a good decision for Nintendo when history proves that Nintendo is the company that knows best how to make money with video games? Nintendo should look at their own history, because before the 3DS and Wii U they didn't post losses, even during their worst times.

Because Nintendo is the last of the Old Ones. Their business strategy is all about selling software to sell hardware, rather than selling hardware to sell software. Nintendo's goal is more contained. None of the others give a damn about what device you buy, so long as you enter their environment somewhere.

oh for crying out loud. which company that went from hardware-maker to third party is okay today?

Fun fact:

Nintendo's GC (worst selling Nintendo home-console) and Nintendo's GBA (worst selling Nintendo handheld to be deemes as "successful" together made more money than Sony's PS2(best selling home console of all time) in the GC-PS2 era.

I'm pretty sure Nintendo is safe. even if the WiiU will never take off (I'm sure it will), they can rely on their huge amount of money in the bank, and the 3DS to keep them afloat for the gen.