If there’s one reason people love the Wii, it’s obviously the web browser.  Okay, well, maybe people love the motion controls, casual appeal, and slew of throwaway games more, but the Wii does, in fact, have a web browser.  Early on, this “fully functional” Opera browser was a free download, but Nintendo soon slapped a 500 point price tag on it, rendering it pretty much ignorable by the vast majority of gamers.  You’ll be happy to know that Nintendo has announced that the Internet Channel will, once again, be a free download.

Admittedly, the Wiimote isn’t the best option for surfing the web, but somebody out there is interested in checking out Youtube videos on their Wii, so I guess this is good news for them.   If you just couldn’t help yourself, and already purchased the should-have-always-been-free browser, Nintendo will be hooking you up with a free NES Virtual Console title.  No word yet on what this game will be, but it is expected to arrive in late October. 

So feel free to download your free Wii browser!  Then feel free to forget you ever did.

*UPDATE* - According to Joystiq, Wii owners who paid 500 points for their internet channel will receive a credit good for any NES Virtual Console game.  The credits will be distributed in late October.