Nintendo's wildly popular Wii(TM)
home video game system not only revolutionizes how people play games, but it
also entices new people into the world of gaming. On Dec. 22, Nintendo and
Opera Software bring the Internet to the living room couch with a free beta
version of the Opera Web browser. Wii owners who are connected and have
activated the Wii Shop Channel can download a free beta version of the Opera
browser to activate the Internet Channel of the Wii Menu and begin surfing the
Web.
(Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20061011/LAW104LOGO )
"This newest Wii Menu channel provides yet another feature to draw
non-gamers in," says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. "All
kinds of people already have discovered that Wii is like nothing they have
ever tried before, and our red-hot sales reflect this public enthusiasm."
"Our software brings the power and reach of the Internet to the hottest
video game system available," says Scott Hedrick, Executive Vice President,
Devices, at Opera Software. "Wii's unique interface adds a new dimension to
our browser, making it a useful tool that the whole family will enjoy
operating with ease."
The final version of the Opera browser will be available at the end of
March 2007, and will be free for all Wii owners to download through the end of
June 2007. After June, users who haven't already downloaded the Opera browser
can go to the Wii Shop Channel to download it for 500 Wii Points.
The Internet Channel provides an optimal Web browsing experience on
people's home television. The Adobe Flash-enabled beta version of the Opera
browser puts the Internet right onto owners' television screens and lets them
browse with ease, enabling them to check sports scores, plot maps or visit
their favorite Web sites. Multiple family members can gather around the
television to plan a vacation or make online purchases. The pointing
abilities of the Wii Remote(TM) allow users to click on links they want to see
or to zoom into any part of the screen through the motion of the controller.
In addition, the Wii Remote can be used with an on-screen keyboard to make
text entry as easy as point and click.
The Internet Channel joins the four already-live channels: Disc Channel,
Photo Channel, Mii(TM) Channel and Wii Shop Channel. The Forecast Channel
goes live on Dec. 20 and provides current and future weather information that
can be accessed using a text list of cities or by using the Wii Remote to zoom
in on a 3-D interactive globe. Weather information is provided by
Weathernews. The Internet Channel, Forecast Channel and Wii Shop Channel are
available at no charge, though they require Wii owners to have a high-speed
Internet connection. For more information about Wii, visit
Wii.com.
The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment,
Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and
software for its Wii(TM), Nintendo DS(TM), Game Boy(R) Advance and Nintendo
GameCube(TM) systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly
2.2 billion video
games and more than 387 million hardware units globally, and has created
industry icons like Mario(TM), Donkey Kong(R), Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and
Pokemon(R). A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in
Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the
Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's
Web site at
www.nintendo.com.
