We all heard the mutterings that Xbox LIVE would be arriving in South Africa this November but now Microsoft South Africa has finally pegged an official date. Xbox LIVE will be launching in South Africa on 10 November 2010.<\/p>\n
A 12-month subscription to an Xbox LIVE Gold membership account will cost R599. A gold account gives access to online gaming services and the soon-to-be-implemented Kinect video chat services. Other benefits come attached to a Gold account, such as early access to content and product discounts.<\/p>\n
The standard, free Xbox LIVE account allows users to create a personal profile with an associated Gamerscore, Gamertag and Avatar. Having a LIVE account will also grant access to the LIVE Marketplace for digital download purchases of games and other content, game updates, game add-ons and more.<\/p>\n
“Xbox LIVE is about building communities and connecting people to each other and to great content. The launch in South Africa is another step toward our vision for LIVE – to deliver the entertainment you want, shared with the people you care about, wherever you are in the world,” said the Microsoft SA Xbox 360 team.<\/p>\n
International LIVE account migration<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the pertinent questions South African Xbox gamers have been asking surrounds the issue of their existing LIVE profiles. Many local players have resorted to creating Xbox LIVE accounts on international Xbox LIVE services, such as that hosted in the UK. These gamers were concerned about whether or not they could migrate their exisiting accounts to the SA implementation of the service.<\/p>\n The SA Xbox team has laid these concerns to rest: “We want everyone to jump in. For those with existing Xbox LIVE account for another region, you’ll be able to migrate to the local service and keep your Profile, Gamer Score, Achievements, Microsoft Points Balance and paid for Subscription time remaining. You can also keep all the downloaded content stored on your hard-drive such as your Avatar items, LIVE Arcade games and songs.”<\/p>\n For full details on account migration, visit: http:\/\/www.xbox.com\/En-za\/live\/faq.htm<\/a><\/p>\n