Xbox Live Reaches One Million Subscribers

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Microsoft’s Million-Member March

Online Gaming Service Xbox Live Reaches Membership Milestone in Less Time Than HBO, America Online and TiVo

REDMOND, Wash. July 15, 2004 Microsoft Corp. today announced that more than 1 million people are now members of the worldwide Xbox Liveâ„¢ online video gaming service. With peak usage time for Xbox Live between 7:30 and 9 p.m., this thrill-seeking throng is showing that they prefer to play TV.

As evidence of online gameplay’s mass appeal and growing importance in the digital entertainment landscape, Xbox Live reached the million-member mark three times faster than other subscriber-based entertainment services such as Home Box Office Inc., America Online Inc. and TiVo Inc.

Microsoft, which introduced the first broadly adapted online gaming service in November 2002 with the launch of Xbox Live, continues to expand the appeal and adoption of broadband. New Xbox Live feature introductions like video chat, content downloads, voice messages and alerts, coupled with highly anticipated games, have fueled rapid uptake and catapulted online gaming into mainstream entertainment.

Much has happened since the service was unveiled:

– Players in 24 countries have spent more than 160 million hours (or 20,000 years) playing Xbox Live!
– Members are playing an average of 265,549 hours every day.
– More than 100 game titles from a host of top publishers including Electronic Arts Inc., Microsoft Game Studios, THQ and Ubisoft Entertainment are playable on Xbox Live, and the number is expected to rise to 150 by the end of the calendar year.
– Players have logged more than 220 million online sessions, an average of 10.5 million sessions per month.
– More than 200 pieces of downloadable content are currently available to expand and enhance already great games, including new levels, new characters, new multiplayer modes and updated sports rosters.
– The top 15 cities worldwide boasting the most Xbox Live members are Tokyo; London; Houston; Chicago; Toronto; San Diego; New York; Brooklyn, N.Y.; Los Angeles; Miami; Seattle; Calgary, Alberta, Canada; San Antonio; Las Vegas; and Seoul, Korea.

(Consumers are clearly choosing Xbox Live online video games as the new digital entertainment nirvana,) said Microsoft Senior Vice President of the Home and Entertainment Division and Chief Xbox Officer Robbie Bach. (Our community has reached a million members in record time, and we’ve got hot new games and expanded features that will continue to feed our customer’s almost insatiable appetite for online play.)

This fall, Xbox Live membership promises to grow even more as several blockbuster franchises hit the service. Electronic Arts Inc.’s lineup of popular titles, including Madden NFL 2005, NCAA® Football 2005 and FIFA Soccer 2005, will be Xbox Live-enabled, as will Halo® 2, Microsoft Game Studios’ much-anticipated sequel to the best-selling Xbox title of all time.

Also this fall, Xbox Live members can enjoy a selection of quick and easy casual games via a new feature called Xbox Live Arcade. Classic card, puzzle, trivia, retro and action arcade games from publishers such as Atari Corp. and Namco Ltd. will be featured in the Arcade, giving gamers yet another innovative way to play together online.

(Great game content has been and will continue to be the key to the success of Xbox Live,) said Corporate Vice President of Worldwide Marketing and Publishing Peter Moore. (What really sets the service apart from others is that we make it incredibly easy for consumers to get online, find their friends, join a game and start playing right away; Xbox Live is a great experience every time they play, regardless of what they play.)

Xbox Live is currently available in 24 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.

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.

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 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 Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq (MSFT)) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

Microsoft, Xbox Live, Halo and Xbox are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.