Families are sticking together and searching for better entertainment value this holiday.

REDMOND,Wash (RushPRnews)11/24/08 — A tough economy is casting a shadow over many people’s gift-giving list right now, providing a question mark as to how they will spend their hard-earned cash this holiday season. To better understand how America’s shopping and entertainment habits are evolving this year, Microsoft Corp. collaborated with Ipsos1and StrategyOne2 to produce the Xbox 360 Holiday Entertainment Survey. It’s no surprise that the majority of respondents admitted to being more cautious about how they will spend their hard-earned cash.

Some of the key findings include these:

• 60 percent of respondents are planning to stay at or close to home to save money over the holidays

• 71 percent are looking for one gift to bring the family together

•89 percent are hunting for gifts that keep on giving

•81 percent of adults in households with children are looking for gifts that provide entertainment while staying home this year2

•86 percent of young adults hope to receive at least one video game this year

•40 percent of adults will visit the movie theater less than last year

Almost Everyone Will Stay Home for the Holidays

This year, the home is the destination for holiday entertainment with three out of five Americans anticipating spending Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s Eve at home to save money. In other words, many families will spend their holiday season in the living room, looking for ways to be entertained economically.

Being Entertained at Home is Crucial to Family Happiness

As purse strings tighten, two-thirds of respondents said they are planning to spend less on friends and family than they did last year,2 with the average American reporting they plan to reduce holiday gift spending by 16 percent, an average of $124 less than 2007. People are looking for something that doesn’t cost too much yet will entertain a wide variety of relatives and holiday houseguests.

Moms polled were interested in finding a way to keep the entire family entertained, with 40 percent agreeing that it was difficult to keep everyone amused. To help put a smile on the faces of family members, 81 percent of parents are looking for gifts this year that can entertain everyone in the comfort of their own home.2 Almost one in three adult respondents said that too much family time around the holidays can get “boring,” and one in five agreed that their family spends long hours sitting around with “nothing to do” during the holidays.

Everyone loves movies. Nearly three-quarters of survey respondents said they plan on watching feature films this holiday. But 40 percent said they would cut back on trips to movie theaters, and 23 percent confirmed they’ll be watching more movies from home.

The Family That Plays Together . . .

After watching movies and TV, playing video games is the next-most popular way for 18–49 year olds to have fun over the holidays, and 86 percent of young adults are looking forward to receiving at least one game this holiday season.2 A recent Microsoft and Harris Interactive Inc. study also found that 64 percent of parents would spend more time playing video games if it was an activity the entire clan could do together. This means in 2008 the whole family can get together and play games such as “Scene It? Box Office Smash,” “Lips” and “You’re in the Movies.”

http://www.xbox.com/value

Launched today, http://www.xbox.com/value is a new section on Xbox.com that pulls together all the latest information about how to get the best return for your holiday entertainment spending this year.

The Xbox 360 Holiday Gift Influencer is a brand-new tool that allows you to answer a series of questions and then receive a customized letter that you can provide to the gift-giver in your life to prove why you need an Xbox 360 console. This funny letter can be e-mailed or printed out, along with an Xbox 360 product wish list to further lead your gift-giver down the right path this holiday.

Xbox 360: Something for Everyone

From games to music to movies, Xbox 360 gives you much more than the typical holiday present — and with an estimated retail price (ERP) starting at $199.99,3 it costs less than you think. With more than 200 E- and T- rated games for the family and the ability to watch TV shows, stream Netflix movies and more,4 Xbox 360 delivers something for every member of your family. After the holidays are over, Xbox 360 is one gift that won’t collect dust.

By joining forces with Netflix, Xbox 360 now offers an additional 12,000 movies and TV episodes to Xbox LIVE Gold Members, for a total of nearly 30,000 pieces of video content.

Xbox 360 is the most affordable next-generation console on the market. The Xbox 360 Arcade Holiday Console comes with six free games, including “Sega Superstars Tennis” and five Xbox LIVE Arcade titles. The Xbox 360 console ($299.99 ERP) and the Xbox 360 Elite Holiday Console ($399.99 ERP) pair the consoles with smash hits such as “LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures” and “Kung Fu Panda” at no additional cost. With Platinum Hits titles including “Forza Motorsport 2,” “Top Spin 2” and “LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy” starting at a suggested retail price of just $19.99 ERP, it’s never been cheaper to start creating your own library of great games, too!

About Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is a premier video game and entertainment system. It is home to the best and broadest games plus more standard and high-definition movies and TV shows on demand than any other device connected to the TV. The digital center 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.

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.

Hard drive recommended for Xbox LIVE, and is required for some features. LIVE Gold membership and/or other fees may apply. See xbox.com/live.

1 Ipsos survey conducted online by a national representative sample of 1,008 adults aged 18 and older, during the week of Oct. 6, 2008, and during the week of Oct. 27, 2008.

2 Data from StrategyOne study conducted by national random-digit-dialing phone study of 1,000 representative adults aged 18 and older in September 2008 (all other statistics from Ipsos survey).

3 Estimated retail price; actual prices may vary.

4 Xbox LIVE Gold membership and Netflix unlimited subscription plan required. See Netflix Terms of Use for details about Netflix service.

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