Xbox Live Family Pack announced
Four Gold subs for the price of two, better parental controls
Microsoft has revealed a new pricing option for its Xbox Live Gold multiplayer gaming service. The Family Pack permits up to four players in one household (and on one Xbox 360) to have their own fully-functional Live Gold accounts for a single annual charge.
Where previously it was necessary to subscribe individually and at full price in order to access games' multiplayer modes and some downloadable content, this bundles up to four accounts into a yearly fee of $99.99
This is the same cost as two individual Live Gold accounts.
The pack also includes new billing and monitoring systems which allow the overall account holder to approve purchases, ration Microsoft points to the other users, and keep an eye on how much time is spent gaming.
Additionally, Microsoft intends to update the Xbox 360's Family Settings to allow tighter control over mature content and playing time, as well as completely removing any adult-rated content from the Xbox 360 Dashboard.
The Family Pack and the redesigned Family Settings will both be released in November, coinciding with the launch of the family-friendly motion controller Kinect.