MS donates Xbox 360 kiosks to childrens hospital

Pediatric patients at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children (RMHC) in Denver today received new Xbox 360(TM) kiosks to play with, thanks to a collaboration between Microsoft Corp. and the Companions in Courage Foundation. RMHC is the only Colorado children's hospital to receive the custom-built game units from the program.

The Companions in Courage Foundation, started by hockey great Pat LaFontaine, established the Lion's Den Kiosk program with Microsoft Corp. Microsoft delivers the mobile game units to select children's hospitals to provide interactive, fun entertainment as a respite for children battling life-threatening illness.

"Microsoft is committed to keeping kids entertained in a variety of ways within a safe gaming environment, so partnering with Companions in Courage to offer children in hospitals a way to connect through something as universal as games, is a natural fit for the work we do," said Microsoft President, Entertainment and Devices Division, Robbie Bach. "The goal for this program is to give these kids a chance to have some fun and just be kids."

Colorado Avalanche hockey greats Peter Budaj and Ruslan Salei broke in the new game kiosks with pediatric patients today at RMHC.

"We are thrilled that Companions in Courage chose to help HealthONE's Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children continue to improve the lives of our patients and their families," said Reggie Washington, MD, chief medical officer for RMHC. "It is wonderful to witness the joy and excitement of these children and teens when they have a chance to break away from the normal hospital routine and let kids be kids."

The customized and hospital-friendly Xbox 360 kiosks are pre-loaded with a variety of E and E10+ rated games, Y-rated television programs, G-rated movies, as well as Xbox LIVE Headset and LIVE Vision Camera capabilities, which enable patients to communicate over a dedicated Xbox LIVE network, the world's largest social network connected to television. This network was created just for the Lion's Den Kiosk program and does not allow patients to communicate with individuals outside the network -- only with those children at other select hospitals around the country. The Xbox 360's parental controls, known as Family Settings, will be used to help restrict access to content outside of ratings parameters, as well as the times during which patients can use the kiosks or consoles.

Companions in Courage founder and NHL Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine said, "Entertainment, creativity and personal connections can be important factors in alleviating some of the isolation and discomfort these children experience each day. Xbox 360 offers young patients a fun escape through games, TV shows, movies and positive interactions with others over the Xbox LIVE network. These gaming stations are a perfect complement to our interactive Lion's Den playrooms."