Nintendo's Wii U gaming console won't play DVD or Blu-ray discs, due to patent licensing fees.

Nintendo's Wii U, a new device that will launch between April and December 2012, will not include and DVD or Blu-ray disc player.

During a Q&A session at E3 last week, investors asked Nintendo's president Satoru Iwata whether the Wii U will be a home entertainment console by including Blu-ray or DVD drives.

"Wii U does not have DVD or Blu-ray playback capabilities," Nintendo's president said. "The reason for that is that we feel that enough people already have devices that are capable of playing DVDs and Blu-ray, such that it didn't warrant the cost involved to build that functionality into the Wii U console because of the patents related to those technologies," he added.

Wii U features a new controller with a 6.2-inch touch-screen that works like a second display, showing the same images being played on a TV screen. The controller can detect motion and interact with what's occurring on a television display. The smaller screen can provide gamers with additional information.