[Dave Baumann]

The Next Generation Of Console Gaming Starts In Amsterdam At X05

LONDON, 12/08/2005 — Today Microsoft lifted the shroud of mystery surrounding the location for X05 and confirmed that Amsterdam will be the city to host this years X0 event. Often referred to as one of the most colourful and vibrant cities in the world, Amsterdam’s sophisticated culture and modern mentality make it the perfect home for this year’s Xbox® invite-only brand experience for the games and entertainment industry.

A highlight of the gaming calendar, Xbox enjoys this opportunity to bring together gamers from around the world and create a unique and immersive experience for their guests. X05 will be held on October 4th and 5th this year and will offer global industry leaders the chance to fully experience Xbox 360; including the first opportunity to play next generation games.

As previous events have shown, location is a key part of the X0 mix. X01 was memorably held in Pierre Cardin’s Bubble House in Cannes, whilst La Isla Magica (Seville) was the theme-park location of X02 and X03 saw guests at an exclusive beach club location in Juan-les-Pins.

Chris Lewis, regional vice president, Xbox, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), said: “We put a great deal of thought into determining the location for X05. We have a lot of exciting announcements to make this year and it was essential that we make them in the right place. To tell you our rational for choosing Amsterdam would reveal some of our plans and we want to keep those as secret as possible! Suffice to say that after X05 it will be clear that the next generation starts with Xbox. Xbox will be sending out more communication and invitations over the next few weeks.

About Xbox 360
Xbox 360 is the future-generation video game and entertainment system that places gamers at the center of the experience. Available this holiday season in North America, Europe and Japan, Xbox 360 will ignite a new era of digital entertainment that is always connected, always personalized and always in high definition.

About Xbox
Xbox 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 the UK for an estimated street price of €149.99/£99.99.

About Xbox Live
Now in its third generation of transforming and uniting Xbox game communities, with more than 300 games planned by end of holiday 2005 and now with presence in 24 countries worldwide, Xbox Live has set the bar for online games entertainment. As the first global, unified online console games service, Xbox Live continues to take online gameplay and entertainment to unprecedented heights. With a rapidly growing global community, Xbox Live offers best-in-class games, intelligent matchmaking, tournaments, unique programming and integration with Xbox.com — there is simply nothing else like it. The service continues to provide more and more ways for members to meet, interact and stay engaged with each other.

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.

[Wunderchu]

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