OSAKA -- Nintendo Co. President Hiroshi Yamauchi is planning to use 20 billion yen of his own money to set up a fund in January to support startup game makers, company officials said Tuesday.
Yamauchi will establish the fund by selling roughly 1.18 million shares in Nintendo, or 0.84 percent of his 10.84 percent share in the company, the officials said.
The fund is aimed at encouraging the development of innovative game software by giving financial support to venture companies for projects considered too risky for Nintendo to invest in.
After a screening process, companies will be given support for one year for each project backed by the fund, the officials said.
Nintendo is eyeing the development of a new type of software that can be accessed by cable and played on the company's GameCube home video game console and Game Boy Advance hand-held console.