Despite the Internet (including myself) having a kitten over the pricing and delivery of Guitar Hero II downloadable content for the Xbox 360, Activision is pleased to announce that they’re rich.
In a press release sent out this morning, the publisher reveals that the Xbox 360 song packs have had over 650,000 downloads through Xbox LIVE Marketplace in less than five months. By RIAA standards, that’s defined as “multi-platinum” status, almost assuring that downloadable song content for future Guitar Hero titles will be delivered in a similar fashion, and at the same price (if not more). The music industry is pleased, indeed.
“We have been working very closely with Activision to make our catalog available for download for the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II,” said Rod Kotler, Director of Music Service for EMI Music Publishing, “The results we have seem 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.”
Like My Chemical Romance for instance, a band that no one has ever heard of — their song pack (the only “new” playable songs released for the 360 version of Guitar Hero II) had 50,000 downloads in its first week. Activision hopes to continue this profitable relationship well into the imminent success of Guitar Hero III — prepare your wallets accordingly.
