Nintendo to Discontinue Online Play for Wii and DS

Nintendo has announced the discontinuation of their Wi-Fi Connection Service for the Wii, DS, and DSi systems. Over 400 titles are affected, including Mario Kart Wii.

Engadget reports:

Services that will keep working on the DS after May include the DSi Shop, DS Browser, and DSi Browser, while the Wii keeps Netflix, Hulu, Wii Shop Channel, Internet Channel, Pay and Play and YouTube.

Could the slow sales of the Wii U be motivating this move? Will casual gamers be put off by this and hurt the company's future sales?