Note, this press release says the News Channel will be released on Saturday in the US. Unless I’m crazy, it’s Friday, and the update is available now. (The above pictures were taken on my TV…) So go download it. But here’s the press release anyway.

NEWS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: AP AND NINTENDO LAUNCH WII NEWS CHANNEL ACROSS AMERICAS

Instant Access, Constant Updates

REDMOND, Wash., Jan. 26, 2007 – As the options for news multiply, Nintendo is putting a simple solution for straight news right in the palm of your hand-in the form of the Wii Remoteâ„¢. The News Channel, free to Wiiâ„¢ owners, will debut on the console’s Wii Menu beginning tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 27. Using the international resources of the Associated Press, the News Channel gives you key stories in multiple categories from across the country and around the world.

“What Wii has done for video gaming, we hope it will also accomplish for news,” says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “Just by pointing at your TV screen, you become your own interactive editor, instantly accessing the latest headline stories, whether they originate in Kansas City or Kyoto.”

“The Associated Press is always looking for innovative ways to expand its audience for news and information,” said Jane Seagrave, vice president and director of AP’s digital division. “The Wii News Channel extends our global reach even further, on yet another platform, offering our news to people who otherwise might not see it.”

The simple user interface allows Wii owners to spin a virtual globe and point to the location of a news event using the Wii Remote. Stories will be listed under headings including Business, Sports, Arts/Entertainment, Technology and Science/Health to allow users to quickly access information in the order they want. At any given time, dozens of stories might be available for each category. In the global view, stories can be grouped by region instead of category. Icons show which stories have been read, which stories are text-only and which ones come with news photos. Because Wii caters to all different ages, the interface allows users to change the size of the text. By using the “always-on” system functionality of WiiConnect24â„¢, stories will be updated frequently, even while owners are sleeping.

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wiiâ„¢, Nintendo DSâ„¢, Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCubeâ„¢ 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 Marioâ„¢, Donkey Kong®, Metroid®, Zeldaâ„¢ and Pokémon®. 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.