The company behind the Wii U's video conferencing tech wants to make it mainstream

Vidyo – the company that powers Google Hangouts and is also behind the video conferencing technology for the Wii U, Wii U Chat – has big plans for its tech, among which is bringing video conferencing into the living room.

The American company was revealed as the specialist behind the Wii U's video conferencing technology in a recent "Iwata Asks" Q&A and, speaking to VentureBeat, it recently talked about its ambitions for its technology.

"We're trying to bring video conferencing to the world," Vidyo chief executive Ofer Shapiro said. "We want to carry it to the masses.

"Imagine the yoga teacher doing online yoga to 50 people. Think about an audience of 100 million people ... for instance buying a subscription for an online Zumba class."

Shapiro tells VentureBeat that Vidyo isn't looking to displace one-on-one video conferencing services like Skype. Rather, it is looking bring video conferencing to the living room to create a new way for teachers, coaches, speakers and instructors to reach a bigger audience.

"The big screen is more social," he said. "You can move around ... certain things are better in that environment. Also, some people are still more fearful of computers – this reduces the barrier. It's market expansion."

The Wii U appears to be Vidyo's first foray into the living room, with the console using the company's tech to power its own video conferences. Vidyo has 25 other partners that include Google, Philips and NTT.