Viva Piñata Tour Celebrates Hispanic Culture
Redmond, Washington—The colorful cast of Viva Piñata™, a new game for Xbox 360™, will be the bearers of fun, music, children's activities, and videogame demonstrations at six launch events in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. Microsoft® will host the multicity tour to celebrate the launch of Viva Piñata for Xbox 360, as well as to provide parents with information about online safety and Viva Piñata-related educational programs for children.
The vibrant world is filled with colorful piñata animals.
"Viva Piñata inspired us to take the spirit of the game and expand the concept to create learning tools to help kids experience more about their Hispanic heritage in a fun and engaging way," said Chris Di Cesare, director of Xbox marketing at Microsoft." One example is a Viva Piñata digital desktop pet piñata that people can download to their computer. Every day the piñata shares new information about Hispanic culture from key holidays to Spanish vocabulary."
Tour Details
Children attending the events will enjoy piñata-making workshops, interactive videogame demonstrations, and the opportunity to be photographed with the characters from the Viva Piñata animated TV series. A traditional piñata breaking game will also give children an opportunity to win an Xbox 360 console and Viva Piñata game.
"Microsoft's initiative around Viva Piñata is a
clear indication of the company's support and
interest in the Hispanic community."
— José Piñero, Microsoft
Viva Piñata , which translates to "long live the piñata," invites gamers of all ages and skill levels to create an immersive world where living piñatas inhabit an ever-changing environment. Beginning with a few basic tools, build and take control of this environment, using creativity and imagination to attract, protect, nurture and manage more than 60 piñata species that can visit their world and make it their home. The Xbox 360 video game follows the debut of the Viva Piñata Saturday morning animated television series on 4Kids TV Fox.
With the launch of Viva Piñata, Microsoft extends the Xbox 360 brand to younger gamers and more diverse audiences. The tour is one of several Microsoft marketing efforts aimed at attracting more U.S. Hispanic consumers, and acknowledgement of the growing influence of Hispanic culture.
Celebrating Cultural Diversity
According to a report published by the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business, U.S. Hispanics will control more disposable personal income than any other U.S. minority group by 2007. Hispanic consumer spending power is expected to top $863 billion, a 300 percent increase in disposable spending power from 1990.
"The video game is one of several initiatives that Microsoft has created in an effort to promote diversity through innovative products," said José Piñero, director of Multi-Cultural Marketing at Microsoft. "Microsoft's initiative around Viva Piñata is a clear indication of the company's support and interest in the Hispanic community."
Viva Piñata has a suggested retail price of $49.99, and is now available at major retailers nationwide. The game was created by Rare Ltd. and is rated E for Everyone. More information about the game can be found at http://www.vivapinata.com.
