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Wii U to ship incomplete, missing Nintendo TVii service and more

One of the most anticipated features of Nintendo's new Wii U system will no longer be available at launch. Nintendo TVii has been delayed until December.

Jeff Bakalar Editor at Large
Jeff is CNET Editor at Large and a host for CNET video. He's regularly featured on CBS and CBSN. He founded the site's longest-running podcast, The 404 Show, which ran for 10 years. He's currently featured on Giant Bomb's Giant Beastcast podcast and has an unhealthy obsession with ice hockey and pinball.
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Jeff Bakalar

Just like the 3DS before it, Nintendo's Wii U console will ship with limited functionality, falling short of what the company promised would be available on launch day this Sunday, according to a Nintendo press release.

Most notable from the release is the absence of the Nintendo TVii service, the free program the company had said would be available from day one. TVii will be activated for the Wii U sometime in December. As you may recall, TVii is the live TV, TiVo DVR, and streaming service integration that aims to become the jumping-off point for your living-room entertainment.

Also missing the launch date will be all the streaming-video apps developed for the platform, including Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Instant Video, and Hulu Plus. Nintendo says these services will be available for the Wii U in the coming weeks.

CNET is trying to confirm with Nintendo which other core services will be available at launch and will update this post with more information as it comes in. Unless we hear otherwise, we're assuming all other services (eShop, Nintendo Network, Miivese, Wii U Video Chat, Wii backward compatibility, and Wii to Wii U data transferring) will work on day one.

This post was updated at 11:43 a.m. PT on November 16 to reflect information received from Nintendo.