REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 4, 2004 — Microsoft Corp., creator of the future-generation Xbox®
video game system, today announced the launch of Game With Fame, a new program that allows fans to play against some of today’s hottest stars on the Xbox Live (TM) service. The launch event, taking place Feb. 4, will give Xbox Live fans a chance to play “ESPN NFL Football” against today’s hottest hip-hop duo and six-time Grammy®
nominees, OutKast.
Xbox Live is the ultimate online gaming experience, giving people the opportunity to play and talk with other gamers around the world any time, day or night. For the Game With Fame program launch, OutKast’s Big Boi will take on gamers around the globe live from Los Angeles, where the band will be preparing for its appearance at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards®
.
Throughout the year Game With Fame will host a league of luminaries from music, film, television and sports. Scheduled to participate are The Strokes, Phantom Planet, The Crystal Method, Fefe Dobson and Kings of Leon. Bands including Korn, Hoobastank, A New Found Glory and Thrice also plan to participate.
“Who better to launch Game With Fame than the hottest musical act around: OutKast,” said Mitch Koch, corporate vice president of marketing for Xbox. “Just as OutKast’s music crosses boundaries and connects people, Xbox Live is becoming a way to link different types of people from all backgrounds and walks of life.”
“If you’ve listened to our music or seen us live, you know OutKast knows how to set it off, and we’re about to change Xbox Live forever,” said OutKast’s Big Boi about the Xbox Live Game With Fame promotion. “Not only will I talk to the OutKast fans out there, but I’ll show ’em how we get down in the ATL on ‘ESPN NFL Football.'”
Since its introduction just 14 months ago, Xbox Live , the first unified online gaming service, has attracted a passionate and growing community of more than 750,000 gamers from 19 countries. Blockbuster titles such as “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six® 3” from Ubisoft, “Project Gotham Racing® 2” and “Counter-Strike (TM) ” from Microsoft® Game Studios, and “Star Wars® Jedi Knight®
: Jedi Academy (TM) ” from LucasArts are driving gamers to Xbox Live in droves. More than 70 Xbox Live titles are now available at retail.
About Xbox
Xbox ( http://www.xbox.com/ ) is the video game system from Microsoft that brings people together for the most exhilarating game and entertainment experiences. Xbox delivers an expansive collection of breakthrough games, powerful hardware and the unified Xbox Live online service. The new tag line, “It’s good to play together,” captures the spirit of Xbox as the social hub of the new digital entertainment lifestyle. Xbox is now available in North America, Asia, Europe and Australia.
About Xbox
Live
Xbox Live , which launched in the United States Nov. 15, 2002, allows gamers to play multiplayer Xbox games with other gamers worldwide via a broadband connection. With a built-in hard drive and Ethernet port, the Xbox console is the only video game system built from the ground up for online gaming. Xbox Live enables gamers to easily find their friends; talk to other players during gameplay through the Xbox Communicator headset; download current statistics and new levels and characters to their Xbox hard drive; and play online — all exclusive features to Xbox Live .
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
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