Nintendo and EA reach initial agreement on Origin and Wii U

Electronic Arts has revealed it will use its database to collect information from Nintendo's online customers, in a move that edges the two companies closer to a long-rumoured 'Origin for Wii U' deal.

An update to EA's privacy policy reveals that, should a customer play any of the publisher's games through a Nintendo Wii U console, "your Nintendo account information will be provided to EA so that we can establish an Origin Account for you".
"You need an Origin Account to play EA's titles online," the policy added, as unearthed by Gamespot.

From EA's perspective, the pool of data could be used to help it target audiences on Nintendo's new console. Further down the line it could possibly use play analytics to enhance game experiences.

Patrick Soderlund, the vice president of EA Games, said in a recent interview with CVG that he wanted console manufacturers to provide the publisher with as much player data as possible.

"Looking back five years and looking at today, there is such a vast difference to how I consume entertainment and how I connect with people. We just have to embrace these changes rather than be afraid of them," he said.

"I think some people are so surprised by the changes that are happening that they become afraid of it. They try to stick to what they know and that's the danger. If you don't adapt you become irrelevant. I absolutely believe that's the case."

The Origin policy added: "By signing up to play EA's titles, you agree that limited user account information can be transferred to EA. Information transferred to EA includes your Mii information, email address, Nintendo Network ID, friend list, country, language and date of birth but does not include credit card number or other financial account information."

Nintendo has suggested previously that the Wii U online games platform - which still remains a relative unknown - will be open for third parties to host their own services.

The platform holder has confirmed a Wii U release date of November 18 in the US and a Wii U release date of November 30 in Europe. The company has set the US Wii U price at $299 for the basic model, while the UK Wii U price starts at £230.