Xbox 360

LONDON, 4th December 2008 - Xbox® today reveals November was its biggest sales month in its six-year European history, with sales up 124% over last November[1]. This strong momentum shows that European consumers are responding to the Xbox 360 mix of value, great games, entertainment, and the recently-launched New Xbox Experience, despite challenging economic conditions.

November 2008 saw the largest Xbox sales ever in the six-year history of the brand in Europe. GfK-ChartTrack data shows that the console outsold PlayStation 3 across the entire region and in particular has seen significant gains in markets like France, Spain and Italy, where it has been outselling PlayStation 3 week after week. Xbox 360 has sold more than seven million consoles in Europe since its launch in November 2005 and was the fastest-growing console in Europe for the month of November, with sales up year-over-year 124% versus 43% for Wii and 3% for PlayStation 3.

Chris Lewis, Regional Vice President, Interactive Entertainment Business EMEA, said: “November was a very significant milestone for Xbox – we sold the most consoles ever in our history in Europe, and are outselling PlayStation 3 week-on-week across Europe. Since the reduction in the Xbox 360 ERP in September, bringing the entry-level price point for Xbox 360 down to £129.99, consumers have responded enthusiastically to the Xbox 360 offering. Our strong partnerships with retail and with publishers have played a big role in this success – we are working closely with retail to ensure a steady supply of consoles throughout the Christmas season, and third-party games have been selling well on the Xbox 360 platform and providing great choice for consumers.

“In the current economic conditions, consumers are more cautious than ever and looking for more value for their entertainment spend,” said Lewis. “Xbox 360 delivers that value - we’re now the best-value next-gen console on the market and this positive momentum indicates Xbox 360 is offering the right blend of gaming and entertainment experiences at the right price.”

Piers Harding-Rolls, senior games analyst at media research company Screen Digest said: “Even under the current economic conditions European consumers are spending strongly on games as we reach the mass adoption phase of this cycle of consoles. This Christmas we expect console game sales to outperform last year by a substantial margin, which is a boost for the whole industry. Consumers recognise that games offer a strong value proposition compared to many other forms of entertainment and this is being reflected at the tills.”

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Nik Thakkar / 020 3047 4087 / nik_thakkar@jcpr.com

Seema Parmar / 020 3047 4001 / seema_parmar@jcpr.com

About Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is a premier video game and entertainment system. It is home to the best and broadest games plus more entertainment than any other device connected to the TV. The digital centre of the living room, Xbox 360 blends unbeatable content, including personal pictures and music, with a unified online social network to create a limitless entertainment experience that can be shared at home or across the globe. More information can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/xbox360.

Xbox 360, which includes a 60GB hard drive and one wireless controller, has an ERP of €239.99/£169.99. The Xbox 360 Elite, which comes with a massive 120GB hard drive for added storage capacity, has an ERP of £229.99. The Xbox 360 Arcade console, perfect for those wishing to make their first foray into the gaming and entertainment world of Xbox, has an ERP of £129.99.

About Xbox LIVE

Xbox LIVE connects more than 14 million members across 26 countries to each other and the entertainment they love. Home of more entertainment from one remote than can be found from any device connected to the television, Xbox LIVE is also a unified online social network bringing friends together, no matter where they are — in the living room or across the world. More information and Xbox LIVE membership can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live.

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