What would be really great is if a single Microsoft Live Gold subscription covered an entire household rather than just one console and/or account. That's wishful thinking, we know, but if you own multiple accounts, Microsoft's new Live Gold Family Pack, available now, should help take some of the sting out of getting everyone online.
The Family Pack subscription costs $100 and covers four 12-month memberships. At that price, you're basically paying for two memberships and receiving two for free, so while it won't help households with 'just' two Xbox 360 Live subscriptions, it's an okay deal for those with three and a pretty good bargain for those with four.
In addition to the discounted price, the special four-pack also includes a few exclusive benefits, such as access to the new Family Center for family account and online settings management; activity monitoring reports; the ability to purchase and gift Microsoft Points Allowances to your children; and family-friendly content and discounts.
Xbox Live Gold Family Pack FAQ
Comments are closed on this article
toastermom
November 08, 2010 at 3:02pm
We have 1 avid adult gamer, 2 teenage boys, a teenage girl and a 10 year old. We currently pay for FOUR xBox live accounts renewing every year on the subscriber's birthday... we have been doing this for 4 years now. Yes... they each have their own console and play simultaneously. And HALLELUJAH... the xBox gods finally heard my cries for a family plan. This will cut our yearly costs in half.
sniggler
November 08, 2010 at 11:36am
How many people here have a significant other that they game with... I'd really like to purchase a 2nd console so my GF and I can both play COD together but hey, M$ would rather rip me off @ $70 for a 1 year gold sub than charge me $70 for 2 and have me spend an extra $400 on console / game...
When my subscription ran out 8 months ago i never renewed... Too busy enjoying the superior graphics / framerate / non-cost of playing my PC games...
$50 for SC2 and I've already gotten my money's worth out of it 3 times over.
Queenof1
November 06, 2010 at 4:10pm
Not sure if this is a good deal for my family. 3 of us, with 2 of us working fulltime jobs and no time to really be online playing games. I have a gold membership for my gamertag which I thought was for the whole family. So when my son wants to play a game online, he uses my tag instead of me buying another membership. Hubby hardly ever goes online. If I decide to go with the family pack, it would be prorated. Hmmmm....
reutnes
November 06, 2010 at 1:57pm
My roommate, the two guys next door, and me all play xbox together regularly. We're not family but I wonder if we can get in on this to save money. I'm sure if I just tell MS they're all my 'bros' it will work out.
I also wish to point out that an account that is LIVE-enabled can bring guests online with them. When your guest signs in to their controller, just have them select the 'guest' profile and you're good to go. If your family only has one console, you may as well only pay for one profile too.
Queenof1
November 06, 2010 at 4:03pm
according to the faqs, it may not be a optimal situation for roommates but yeah, if you think it will work, go for it.
someone87
November 05, 2010 at 8:15am
I don't really know myself, but what does Xbox live give you, other than tha ability to connect your Xbox to the internet and play with others?
For all that $$$$$, does MS actually provide you with any particular service, or are you basically paying them to not criple your Xbox?
It would seem really hard to swollow that much $$$$ without any kind of monitary value in return.
majorsuave
November 05, 2010 at 7:46am
`"At that price, you're basically paying for two memberships and receiving two for free, so while it won't help households with 'just' two Xbox 360 consoles, it's an okay deal for those with three and a pretty good bargain for those with four."
You know you can have different XBox live accounts on a single console right?
You can even 4 of them signed in simultaneously, so the deal is sweet for families that found out you can use multiple accounts, especially those where daddy doesnt want the kids to ruin his "Insert M Rated title" saves
Jonthomasdesigns
November 05, 2010 at 7:27am
What i cannot understand nor find a answer to anywhere is why i cannot put my Gold Gamertag on all 3 of my 360's at once ?? Sure i can carry around a usb drive with it on it but that seems silly .. Arghhhhh
bobthegoat2001
November 06, 2010 at 1:05am
The only thing I can think of is so that everybody on all three consoles can't play your downloaded, Arcade games etc.
gothliciouz
November 05, 2010 at 7:16am
what a joke!...i will never pay for any console suscriptions service. c'mon i thought this site is dedicated only to pc's not consoles.
btw i hate having to type this "security question" thing everytime i wanna leave a comment; i don't even think that is helping, as there are a bunch of spam in the other articles.
samduhman
November 05, 2010 at 6:56am
Yaa...hmmm....NO thanks Microsoft. Between my PCs, HTPC and PS3 I have NO need to support Microsofts XBOX live scam. Before I bought the HTPC (Acer Revo 3610) I used the 360 for Netflix but between the HTPC and the recent upgrade Sony put out for the PS3 which greatly improved Netflix streaming our 360 sits dormant. Eat that Microsoft.
ender1776
November 05, 2010 at 6:44am
Not to play the role of capt obvious here, but the subscriptions are per account, not console. If you look at the FAQ the accounts actually have to start of the SAME console to work as part of the pack, and they can then migrate to another console if they wish.
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