Available for download via the Wii Shop Channel, the Internet Channel offers a way to use your Wii console to browse the Internet. If you do not download this channel, you will not be able to browse the Internet.

There are two ways to control access to the Internet: Parental Controls and web filtering.

The Wii Parental Controls settings offer you a means to manage what Wii content is accessible to your child. If you apply Parental Controls, you will be prompted to set a 4-digit PIN. That PIN is needed to access Wii features that you choose to restrict. You can also use this to ‘lock out’ games that are rated for older players.

Please click here for more information about setting up Parental Controls on Wii.

If you want to let your child access the Internet but filter the sites the child can visit, Nintendo offers easy access to Astaro Internet Security to provide a web-filtering solution. The Astaro Wii Content Filtering Portal feature can be found in the Favourites menu of the Internet Channel on Wii. Currently, this service is free for 30 days, but after the trial period, a fee for this service does apply.

The Internet Channel does not store browsing history.

Nintendo has made an extra effort to ensure that the online experience is one that is both safe and fun. With this in mind, Nintendo has implemented a system so that players cannot exchange information with each other unless they have registered each other’s Friend Codes.

Although some Nintendo games and games made by third-party publishers allow you to play against randomly selected opponents, you will not be able to communicate with these opponents – only people with whom you’ve exchanged Friend Codes.

Please note that the Wii console also offers the possibility to send messages to other Wii users, but only if both parties have registered each other’s console-specific Wii number. You can block the sending of messages in the Parental Controls settings. Please click here for more information about setting up Parental Controls on Wii.

A Friend Code is a unique numeric code that allows a player to communicate directly with a friend’s Nintendo DS or Wii online via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. When two people have exchanged Friend Codes, they can find each other online when they’re logged on to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and playing the same game.

For instance, if a person is playing Animal Crossing: Wild World and logged on to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, that person can see if any of his or her friends (people he or she has exchanged Friend Codes with) are logged on as well. If yes, the friends can visit each other’s town within the game.

In many games, players who have exchanged Friend Codes can communicate with each other, either via text chat or the Voice Chat feature. If two people have not exchanged Friend Codes, there is no way for the two of them to directly communicate via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

We encourage you to instruct your children never to give out their Friend Codes to strangers, nor to post them on Internet forums.