Calling all Xbox Live gamers! You're about to experience a whole new level in entertainment. Yes, we're talking about the launch of Xbox 360, but we're also talking about the brand new, and free, Xbox Live Diamond Card, an unprecedented merger of your entertainment activities, online and off. Never heard of it? Well, read more to find out what you're in for...

American Technology Research analyst Paul-Jon McNealy said he believed Microsoft had 300,000 to 400,000 units for the launch in North America, around 300,000 for the European launch and 100,000 for Japan. He expects Microsoft to ship another 300,000 units in the next week in North America, which would put the total at about 1 million units. Additional shipments would be required at month end to reach McNealy's 1.5 million to 1.8 million target.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will have to shop around for an X360 console this holiday season just like everybody else. "The Ballmer children do not have their Xbox 360 yet. I'm in the same boat as many of you," Ballmer said. "Thanks to the wonders of Sarbanes-Oxley, management does not get a free Xbox 360," he quipped at a meeting of technology industry executives. Sarbanes-Oxley means Microsoft would have to classify a free game console as income for Ballmer.

Last week it was revealed that Microsoft currently has over 200 Xbox titles that are compatible and working on its next-gen X360 console. This only being the case for North American versions of the console, the list for other territories was not yet available. Earlier this week Japanese gamers got a huge disappointment with only 12 titles, and today Europeans picking up an Xbox 360 will be able to play over 150 Xbox titles. Remember this only works with the harddrive enabled system, not the cheap Core System, unless you upgrade. The process is made possible by software emulation, games will be playable in High Def. with antialiasing, which will be freely downloadable, burn on cd and insert in the X360, or install automatically through Xbox Live.

Microsoft today announced that 18 Xbox 360 games, and 13 Xbox 360 accessories will be available in North America on Nov. 22, while Europeans will be able to pikc up 15 Xbox 360 games, when the system launches in Europe on 2 December. Read more for details ...

Microsoft today announced that retailers nationwide are beginning to sell various Xbox 360 games, accessories, and Xbox Live retail offerings in advance of the November 22 console launch. Eager fans are encouraged to check with their local retail stores for information regarding specific Xbox 360 product availability. Reports have come in that PGR3, Perfect Dark Zero, and Kameo are available left and right.

Firaxis Games today announced the appointment of Bretton Wade as Director of Technology. He'll be responsible for directing the development of game and graphics technology that will enable the teams at Firaxis to reach new heights in delivering stunning game play experiences on next generation consoles and personal computers.

Microsoft and RealNetworks today announced three agreements valued at $761 million to RealNetworks to settle their antitrust case and create a new partnership to innovate and promote consumer choices in digital music and games, including offering RealNetworks' digital games through Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade.

Today at X05, Microsoft unveiled its lineup of games for the Xbox 360 as it gears up for launch. X05 is being held today, and here is a deluge of screens from the Microsoft X360 launch titles that are being presented:

• Crackdown
• Gears of War
• Kameo: Elements of Power
• Mass Effect
• Perfect Dark Zero
• Too Human

Microsoft Corp. is reorganizing its corporate structure and giving one of its newest executives broader powers in an effort to better compete against its rivals, such Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc, but also to reduce bureaucracy, which has lead to communication problems and product delays.

Microsoft today announced that the next generation of online multiplayer gaming service Xbox Live will be available in North America on the X360 starting this holiday. In addition to the free Xbox Live Silver membership available to every Xbox 360 owner, for only $49.99 (U.S.) or $59.99 (CDN)* gamers can amplify their gaming experience with a 12-month Xbox Live Gold membership. No more credit card will be required to sign up!

The Seattle Times is speculating that Bill Gates might be opening shop in New York to promote the upcoming Xbox 360. A retail store would dovetail with Microsoft's recent efforts to raise its profile in New York, an area that generates more than $1 billion a year in business-software sales for the company. New York is also home to the media giants Microsoft is courting with its software for distributing and protecting music, movies, games and television. Possible location might be smack in the middle of Times Square.

Today at the German Games Convention, Microsoft revealed that consumers can get their hands on the Xbox 360 for as little as $299.99 starting this holiday season. The $299 version will come with a wired controller but will not have the 20-gigabyte hard-disc drive, wireless controller, headset, Ethernet cable and wireless television remote control included in the $399 version.

Infinium Labs' Board of Directors announced today that game industry veteran Kevin Bachus has been named Chief Executive Officer and appointed to the Company's Board of Directors, effective immediately. Bachus, Infinium Labs' President and Chief Operating Officer since December 2003, succeeds founder and former CEO Timothy M. Roberts. Roberts will continue to serve on the Board of Directors.

Microsoft has signed Exent Technologies to be Microsoft's first worldwide aggregation partner for digital distribution.

Microsoft Corp. announced that it is adopting more stringent controls for registering legitimate copies of its flagship Windows operating system in an effort to curtail piracy of its products worldwide. Read more for details ...

Microsoft announced on Friday that the next version of its operating system will be "Windows Vista." Formerly known by its code-name Longhorn, Windows Vista is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2006, and Microsoft has promised numerous enhancements, including better security, graphics and computing over the Web.

Microsoft reported a 37 percent jump in fourth-quarter profits today, citing strong sales across all its divisions, from servers to its Xbox console and video games. For the quarter ending June 30, Microsoft's net earnings climbed to $3.7 billion, up from $2.69 billion a year ago. Sales also jumped 9 percent to $10.2 billion, up from $9.3 billion a year ago.

Microsoft announced that it has signed exclusive rights to develop and publish MMO games featuring Marvel Enterprises' super heroes, including Spider-man, the X-men and the Hulk. The deal covers massively multiplayer online (MMO) game titles developed for Microsoft's upcoming Xbox 360 and published by the game studio. The deal is Marvel's first MMO pact, and the first title is expected in 2008.

IBM will receive $775 million in cash and $75 million in credit for software from Microsoft Corp. to settle claims that resulted from the federal government's antitrust case against Microsoft in the 1990s. U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson ruled in 2000 that Microsoft engaged in anticompetitive practice, and the judge's ruling cited IBM as a company that Microsoft had forced to "desist from certain technological innovations and business initiatives." Read the full article here ...

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates hinted Thursday that his company might license the software underlying its Xbox gaming machine to a variety of outside companies in a bid to expand the market share for the Xbox machine

By now everybody knows Microsoft's next gen console will use an ATI GPU instead of the current NVIDIA powered Xbox. The question on a lot of people's minds was, will there be backwards compatibility? While Sony and Nintendo already announced that its new consoles will be able to play previously released titles, Microsoft was quiet on the matter and only at E3 did we get a vague "best-selling Xbox titles would work on the Xbox 360." 1UP finally got some more information as it seems that Microsoft has bought a technology license from NVIDIA to allow the X360 to emulate using the IBM PowerPC CPU's. Several "patches" will ship on the X360's HD at launch, while and others will be made available through Xbox Live at a later date.

Microsoft has sued four online retailers in California and Virginia for selling pirated software after having received complaints from consumers and businesses who had purchased software from those outlets.

Fonix Speech announced an agreement to continue to deliver Fonix voice command technology to the Xbox 360. Fonix Speech is an integrated communications carrier providing telecommunications services and value-added speech technologies

Tonight, Microsoft had its pre-E3 media briefing at the Shrine Auditorium. One of the major announcemens was the commitment of Square Enix to bring its Final Fantasy series to the X360, starting with FF XI. X360 will be backwards-compatible with top-selling Xbox games, and currently more than 160 games are in development for X360, with 25 to 40 games slated for release this calendar year. Various new titles were confirmed such as Mistwalker's Blue Dragon, Quake 4, Call of Duty 2, Capcom's Dead Rising, Epic's Gears of War and also reiterated are the X360 specs. Read more for details ...