More info on Splinter Cell
Posted by Infestator on Wednesday, November 13 2002

UBI SOFT AND MICROSOFT JOINTLY HYPE XBOX RELEASE OF Tom Clancy's SPLINTER CELL
Local campaigns promote the award-winning game throughout Europe and Australia

November 12, 2002 - Ubi Soft® Entertainment, one of the world's largest video game publishers, has formed local marketing partnerships with Microsoft throughout Europe and Australia to promote the November 28 European release of Tom Clancy's Splinter CellTM for the XboxTM video game system from Microsoft. While marketing actions vary from country to country, the overall strategy is to introduce Splinter Cell as a new huge franchise within the Tom Clancy brand and to position it as a game of choice for Xbox. Microsoft and Ubi Soft have made a joint investment to ensure Splinter Cell is a success this Christmas.

"The Splinter Cell buzz keeps getting louder thanks to our local marketing efforts with Microsoft," said Alain Corre, Ubi Soft's Managing Director for Europe, Asia-Pacific and South America. "We already have 1.1 million pre-orders across the world for the game, and the momentum is building as more people discover how we've taken stealth-action gaming to a whole new level."

"Splinter Cell is emerging as one of the most-wanted games on Xbox this Christmas," said Michel Cassius, European Director of Publishing, Xbox. "It's the best-looking games ever created, and has already been garnering rave reviews in the specialist press in addition to its ECTS Game of the Show award. We're pleased that the developers chose Xbox to bring their vision to life, especially since this is a game that is redefining the stealth-action genre. We're working with our partner Ubi Soft to ensure this game gets a marketing campaign every bit as effective as one of Sam Fisher's secret gadgets."

The joint marketing campaigns include a 30-second specific TV advertisement that will run from mid-November to its release date in Britain, France and Germany. This spot will also be broadcasted in cinemas in the UK, Spain and Germany among other countries. Another 30-40 second television advertisement - sponsored by Microsoft and featuring Splinter Cell along with a lineup of other Xbox games - will be aired in 16 countries from November until mid-December.

To catch people by surprise, actors have been hired in Belgium, Spain and other countries to visit retail outlets disguised as Sam Fisher, the hero of Splinter Cell. In France, actors dressed as the covert Third Echelon agent have been sent to mix with crowds at concerts, sporting events and other gatherings. A press and trade event at the renowned Café l'Atlantique in Milan, Italy, for example, featured hundreds of demo stations to play Splinter Cell and attracted approximately 100 journalists and 100 buyers in October. In Germany, the game will be demonstrated at console stations installed by Microsoft at major universities

Local efforts are also focused on building a strong in-store presence for Splinter Cell. Ubi Soft and Microsoft sales teams have negotiated attractive consumer offers on a country-by-country basis, and continue to visit local retailers to promote the game. Microsoft includes Splinter Cell in its demo units in major European and Australian retail stores, and has positioned the game among its key titles during its Xbox tours. It also includes the game in its promotional materials - including a DVD that promotes Xbox games and Xbox game catalogues - and features it on its Web site.

© 2002 Ubi Soft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Splinter Cell, Ubi Soft and the Ubi Soft logo are trademarks of Ubi Soft Entertainment in the US and/or other countries.

Splinter Cell is a trademark of Ubi Soft Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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