Nintendo is taking quite the financial hit to make sure players don't drop their Wiimotes. Those free covers that we reported on earlier today are expected to cost the company over two billion yen (about $18 million [or £8.8m]), according to the online version of Japan's Asahi newspaper.
The site reports that Nintendo will ship out about twenty million of the cover units. This is not just to Japan, as the covers will be available internationally as well (see Nintendo America's website for more details.)
Despite the high cost, Nintendo reps told the site that they don't expect any effect on their bottom line. This isn't a big surprise, considering that Nintendo is now chasing Toyota for the number one spot in Japanese industry.