Wii’s Web Browser Will Be Free

As we reported earlier this month, the Opera browser will power the internet experience on Nintendo's soon-to-be-released Wii console. And now, according to a news item at Next Generation, the Opera browser will be a free download until then end of June 2007. After that, Wiiers can buy the browser using Wii points:

Starting in July 2007, consumers will have to use an undisclosed number of Wii points to purchase the software. Wii points are the currency used to purchase downloadable content on Wii’s upcoming online service.

Opera’s Web browser will support Flash and AJAX-based content such as Google maps, and will be based off of the Opera 9 browser.

No word on pricing yet, but when it goes on sale, the Opera browser will probably be somewhere between $25 and $30, which is commensurate with their current pricing structure for mobile devices.

It looks like Opera is going to own the browser market for devices by this time next year. They've done a great job of securing good partners, but the real deal-maker is that they've developed a solid browser for devices that runs Flash and can utilize Ajax interfaces. Oh, and it actually works really well.

For the record, I wanted to write "Frii" really badly in the headline, but I held back.

[via GigaOM]