Activision’s Guitar Hero II downloadable content attains platinum sales records.
Guitar Hero II publisher Activision announced that more than 650,000 song packs have been downloaded on the Xbox LIVE Marketplace for the guitar title in less than five months. In its first week of release, the recent My Chemical Romance song pack, which included “Teenagers”, “Famous Last Words, and “This is How I Disappear”, sold over 50,000 units on the online marketplace.
“Activision was the first third-party publisher to offer downloadable content via Xbox LIVE to consumers and as a result, we have tremendous insight into the types of content that consumers want,” states Dusty Welch, head of publishing for RedOctane. “The Guitar Hero II downloadable video game song packs are some of the most popular content on Xbox LIVE and are quickly becoming a very lucrative revenue stream and powerful promotional vehicle for musicians and record labels today.”
Tim Riley, worldwide executive of music for Activision, added, “Activision has long been a pioneer in recognizing the importance of music in games and has forged unprecedented partnerships with all of the major record labels, music publishers and bands in order to offer Guitar Hero fans unrivaled access to music catalogues.”
“We have been working very closely with Activision to make our catalog available for download for the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II. The results we have seen from download sales to date have been very impressive. This partnership is providing EMI Music Publishing and its songwriters with a valuable new source of revenue, and at the same time giving us the opportunity to exploit portions of our catalog that might otherwise not get such high-profile exposure,” remarked Rod Kotler, Director of Music Services at EMI Music Publishing.
Commenting on the success of the My Chemical Romance video game song pack, Brian Schechter, the band’s manager, said, “Activision has always had the artists and music culture in mind for their games. Now, the band’s fans will be able to enjoy their music in a new way that they truly enjoy. As long as Activision and Guitar Hero keep providing quality products to the world, I would love to have all Riot Squad artist’s in business with them.”
Opportunities to increase revenue will continue to grow as Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is released this fall. Songs from the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Pearl Jam, Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Metallica, as well as original material by such guitarists Slash and Tom Morello will all be featured on the game and potentially provide purchasable content.
“Having Warner Music Group’s master recordings in Guitar Hero III is a fantastic opportunity for everyone. Both our current and catalog artists are being exposed to new audiences through this great game. By selling additional tracks, we don’t have to wait for another volume of the game to be released to offer new artists and music to gamers around the world,” said Mark Pinkus, Senior Vice President of Synch Licensing and Strategic Marketing at Rhino Entertainment.
