Jay-Z, Eminem and DJ Hero(TM) Join in Groundbreaking Collaboration to Bring New Music and DJ Culture to Gaming Platform

Jay-Z, Eminem and DJ Hero(TM) Join in Groundbreaking Collaboration to Bring New Music and DJ Culture to Gaming Platform

Innovative Partnership Includes Special Edition Featuring Music CDs from Both Artists

SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Jay-Z and Eminem - two of the music industry's most influential and successful artists - will join DJ Hero(TM), the highly-anticipated new game that is bringing DJ culture and new music genres including hip-hop, electronic, R&B and soul music to the successful Guitar Hero(R) platform, Activision Publishing, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) announced today.

Jay-Z and Eminem will contribute some of their popular songs to DJ Hero and will collaborate on a special branded edition of the game that will include an advanced version of the game's turntable controller, a metal traveling case that transforms into a performance-ready DJ stand and two exclusive music CD compilations featuring greatest hits and new mixes from each artist. Jay-Z and Eminem will both provide downloadable content later this year that will give DJ Hero fans fresh mixes of their material.

"Jay-Z and Eminem are innovators and they share a vision for expanding their genre by letting fans embrace technology and music in new and exciting ways to get the most out of the experience," said Dan Rosensweig, president and CEO of Guitar Hero. "Jay-Z and Eminem embody an entire generation and will continue to influence popular culture. Now their fans can experience what it's like to play the music, mix the music and compete with themselves and others in a game that expands with the user."

"A DJ has the ability to use music to control people's emotions and is responsible for the entire vibe of a room, a club or a party," said Jay-Z. "DJ Hero is the first video game that allows everyone to enjoy the unique experience of creating that environment."

"I came up doing freestyle battles on local stages with other MCs and DJs," said Eminem. "DJ'ing is an essential part of hip-hop and DJ Hero will give people all over the chance to experience the music from the other side of the turntables."

DJ Hero immerses fans into DJ culture and a sea of music as they take turns with their friends, scratching songs, playing along to the hottest tracks and ruling the party. The game's innovative turntable controller was created exclusively for the game and features familiar DJ tools including a fully-rotating turntable, sample buttons, effects dial and crossfader. Players master various DJ techniques as they play along to visual cues for scratching, blending, crossfading and sampling, and can also add their own creative spark by choosing to add a variety of effects, samples and scratches. Social expression is heightened with euphoric multiplayer gameplay where two DJs can battle competitively or have a player join in to emcee over any track in the game using any USB compatible microphone. Additionally, gamers can rock together as DJ Hero features DJ-guitar exclusive mixes played with a turntable controller and Guitar Hero(R) guitar controller.

DJ Hero is part of a highly anticipated fall video game lineup that includes Guitar Hero(R) 5 and Band Hero(TM), which will redefine how consumers interact with music. Through unique partnerships with some of the hottest rock, hip-hop and top 40 artists, these games are bringing more fun ways to explore, share and participate in music for millions of people around the world.

DJ Hero is being developed by FreeStyleGames for the Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PLAYSTATION(R)3 and PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment systems and the Wii(TM) system from Nintendo. The game is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information about DJ Hero, please visit djhero.com.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products.

Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands and Australia. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as "outlook," "will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans," "believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate," future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain," "scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar expressions to help identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales levels of Activision Publishing's titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision Publishing's ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision Publishing's products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Activision Publishing, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, vendors and third-party developers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, Activision Blizzard's success in integrating the operations of Activision Publishing and Vivendi Games in a timely manner, or at all, and the combined company's ability to realize the anticipated benefits and synergies of the transaction to the extent, or in the timeframe, anticipated, and the other factors identified in Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

(C) 2009 Activision Publishing, Inc. Guitar Hero, Activision and RedOctane are registered trademarks and DJ Hero is a trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc.

"PlayStation", "PLAYSTATION" and "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Used with Permission. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. Wii and the Wii logo are trademarks of Nintendo.

Source: Activision Publishing, Inc.

CONTACT: Eric Hollreiser, Vice President, Public Relations, GUITAR HERO,
+1-424-744-5784, Eric.hollreiser@activision.com

Web Site: http://www.activision.com/

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/007396.html

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