Microsoft Confirms Xbox 360 Elite Details, Announces New Xbox 360 Video Marketplace Partners
March 28, 2007
Microsoft has confirmed the April 29th U.S. debut of the Xbox 360 Elite, the new model that will include a 120GB hard drive, a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) port, a high-definition cable, and a premium black finish for the console, wireless controller, and Xbox Live headset for $479. A one-month Xbox Live Gold account will also come bundled with the Elite.
The new 120GB hard drive will also be sold as a stand-alone accessory for $179, “to give current Xbox 360 owners greater choice and flexibility in their games and entertainment experience,” according to an official company statement.
Additional Xbox 360 Elite accessories, such as the black Xbox 360 Wireless Controller ($49.99), Xbox 360 Play & Charge kit ($19.99), and the Xbox 360 rechargeable battery ($11.99) will be available separately from the April 29th date onwards.
“Today’s games and entertainment enthusiast has an insatiable appetite for digital high-definition content,” said Peter Moore, corporate vice president for the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “Xbox 360 Elite’s larger hard drive and premium accessories will allow our community to enjoy all that the next generation of entertainment has to offer.”
Microsoft officials have also announced the support of a raft of new video content providers for Xbox Live, including Paramount, Warner Bros., A&E Network, ADV Films, National Geographic, and TotalVid.com.
Paramount Pictures will also offer content on Xbox Live for the first time, with move titles such as Braveheart, Team America: World Police, World Trade Center, and South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release direct-to-video movies exclusively in high definition on Xbox Live; Sublime and Babylon 5: The Lost Tales are confirmed.
A&E Network will offer “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” “King of Cars,” “Gene Simmons Family Jewels,” “Driving Force,” and “Criss Angel Mindfreak.” National Geographic will offer television series such as “Is It Real?,” “Taboo,” “21 Days to Baghdad,” and “Air Force One.”
Specific titles from ADV Films and TotalVid.com have not yet been announced, although the former is one of the major producers and distributors of Japanese anime in the West. TotalVid.com specializes in extreme sports such as skiing, snowboarding, skateboarding, motocross, surfing and mountain biking.
Microsoft claim that the new partners will add more than 1,500 hours of downloadable content to that already available on Xbox Live. The downloading of movies and TV shows is currently limited to North America, with no specifically announced timetable for a similar service, which would require different licensing deals in other parts of the world.
South Park Makes HD Debut on XBox Live
March 6, 2007
South Park will make its high-def debut on XBox’s Live Marketplace on March 20 as a free high-def download to XBox Live members from March 20 to April 3. The XBox episode, titled “Good Times with Weapons,” first aired on South Park in 2004, and this will be the first time this episode - or any other, for that matter - will air in HD.
Also during the March 20-April 3 promotion, Best Buy will be giving away a free HD DVD of the South Park episode with every XBox 360 game console or HD DVD attachment drive purchased.
Nintendo’s Wii News Channel
January 25, 2007
The Wii News Channel, scheduled to debut Saturday, will primarily feature top news stories and photographs from The Associated Press. Consoles with a broadband Internet connection and the Opera Web browser will be able to access the free news channel, which will offer AP news in multiple languages. Japanese-language news will come from a separate agency.
There were no immediate plans to sell advertising space, said Perrin Kaplan, vice president for marketing at Nintendo’s U.S. headquarters. News will be displayed through an interactive map, which users can navigate with the Wii’s wireless controller, Kaplan said. “The beauty of it is it zooms in and out of areas of the world. So if you really want to focus on regional news or national news versus international, you just blow up the map of the U.S.”
The AP has a two-year contract to provide news and photos to Nintendo, and would like to provide multimedia in the future, said Jane Seagrave, vice president of new media markets for the New York-based news cooperative. “It’s a very innovative new application of what we’re doing generally, which is to try to get our content to new audiences on new platforms,” Seagrave said.
A recent report from market research firm NPD Group said the Wii has sold 1.1 million units since it was released in the U.S. on Nov. 19, with 604,200 of those units sold in December.
Nintendo isn’t the only company hoping to offer more from its video game console with online connections; Xbox scored an early hit with its Xbox Live online gameplay system, and has since begun offering more perks to Internet-connected users.
AP will supply news for the Wii in English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, and Swiss-German, Seagrave said. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Japanese news company Goo will supply Nintendo’s Japanese-language news, Kaplan said.
“The Nintendo Wii demographic is definitely a wider demographic than your traditional hardcore gamer,” said Billy Pidgeon, a video game industry analyst at IDC in New York. “It kind of makes sense for other types of content to be made available on the Wii.”
Hip-Hop Gaming League - Season 2
January 18, 2007
Hip-Hop Gaming League officials have announced the launch of the organization’s second season, which will include an online gaming tournament headlined by 32 hip-hop and professional sports personalities.
The Hip-Hop Gaming League competes primarily on the Xbox 360 and is headlined by celebrity players from the world of music, sports, and other entertainment media personally selected by Snoop Dogg, who also acts as sole referee and enforcer of the league’s rules. It will again be promoted by MTV.
New to this season, registered Global Gaming League (GGL) members will also be able to compete in a parallel league for a chance to go to the HHGL Finals on February 16 in Las Vegas. The players lined up for the second season include returning players such as Paul Wall, Just Blaze, Krayzie Bone (from Bone Thugs n Harmony), Major League Soccer star Cobi Jones, and the NBA’s Jalen Rose.
Joining them for this second season are Yung Joc, Rick Ross, Lupe Fiasco, Lil Wayne, Birdman, DJ Maseo of De La Soul, Malice and Pusha T of The Clipse, DJ Revolution, Xololanxinxo, Lil Keke, Hi-Tek, Big Pooh, Warren G, Jibbs, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder, the NFL’s Brandon Marshall, Darnell Bing, and Michael Robinson, and the NBA’s Trevor Ariza.
Each HHGL celebrity player will be given an Xbox 360 and EA Sports’ NCAA 07 Football, and will compete against each other in order to earn points and advance up the tournament ladder. Organizers note that additional games like Saints Row, Madden NFL 07, NFL 2K7, NBA 2K7, or others may also be added by Snoop Dogg as the competition continues. HHGL celebrities also have the option to cross over and challenge the public to earn extra points.
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