Best Buy Celebrates the 9-9-09 Release of “The Beatles™ ROCK BAND™” and Beatles Remastered Studio Albums with In-Store Events in 10 Top Markets

Prizes include a trip of a lifetime to Abbey Road and the chance to experience Best Buy’s Reward Zone Premier Silver Program

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Beatlemania is in full swing at Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY) to celebrate the release of The Beatles™: ROCK BAND™ and The Beatles’ remastered studio albums. On Wednesday, Sept. 9, the nation’s leading entertainment destination will celebrate the launch by giving away all-expense paid trips to London to tour The Beatles’ famous stomping grounds, including an exclusive tour of Abbey Road Studios plus all access membership to its Reward Zone Premier Silver program. Fans can enter to win the trips throughout the day with a variety of other Beatles memorabilia and giveaways occurring during live broadcasts with top morning show DJs in 10 cities across the country– Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia and San Francisco. Customers will also have the opportunity to experience the unique entertainment access benefits Best Buy provides its best customers with complimentary Reward Zone Premier Silver memberships being given away throughout the event.


“With their timeless music, The Beatles have long been a favorite of Best Buy customers,” said Gary Arnold, senior entertainment officer for Best Buy. “The Beatles: Rock Band and The Beatles’ remastered studio albums are two of the most highly anticipated entertainment releases of the year, and we’re thrilled to celebrate with the fans and provide our customers a unique experience they can’t get anywhere else.”

Added Barbara Olson, vice president for Reward Zone, “We’re complementing the in-store experience with a first for Best Buy by giving away 50 Reward Zone Premier Silver memberships. Now every customer can experience the exclusive entertainment benefits of Reward Zone Premier Silver status along with the program’s additional perks.”

Celebrate with In-Store Festivities

Best Buy brings The Beatles phenomenon back to life with a series of in-store festivities:

• Be the first to play the new The Beatles: Rock Band. A playable version of the new game is currently available at more than 800 Best Buy stores. For a complete store list, go to www.bestbuy.com.
• On 9/9/09, the festivities kick off at 8 a.m. Prizes and memorabilia giveaways, including gadgets, exclusive Beatles’ t-shirts, The Beatles: Rock Band game will occur throughout the day. In addition, customers are eligible to win a one-year Reward Zone Premier Silver membership with benefits including special access to sought after entertainment events.
• Live radio broadcasts from top morning show DJs.

Win an All-Expense Paid Trip to Abbey Road!

Fans attending the in-store events can enter to win Reward Zone Premier Silver Status and the trip of a lifetime with one winner selected from each of the store locations. The winner, along with his/her guest, will be whisked away to London, England for an all-expense-paid trip, where they will tour EMI’s famed Abbey Road Studios, where The Beatles recorded their albums. In addition, winners will be taken on a walking Magical Mystery Tour including:

• The Beatles ‘rooftop session’ location
• Paul McCartney’s offices
• The ‘birthplace’ of Beatlemania
• The Beatles coffee shop
• A Hard Day’s Night and Help! Film locations
• Registry office where Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr both were married
• The Beatles Apple shop

Entries will be accepted on the day of the event through in-store kiosks in the 10 event locations with the DJs announcing the winners on air the following morning, September 10, 2009. Visit www.bestbuy.com for a list of event locations.

About The Beatles: Rock Band

The Beatles: Rock Band allows fans to pick up the guitar, bass, mic or drums and experience The Beatles’ extraordinary catalogue of music through gameplay that takes players on a journey through the legacy and evolution of the band‟s legendary career. From the early touring days in 1963 Liverpool to the immortal, final performance on the Apple Corps rooftop, fans can follow in The Fab Four‟s footsteps as they traverse the globe during the height of Beatlemania.
Additionally, for the first time in a music videogame, The Beatles: Rock Band introduces three-part vocal harmonies to gameplay, allowing gamers to revel in the unparalleled vocal stylings of The Beatles.
In conjunction with the release of the entire, original, digitally re-mastered Beatles CD catalogue,The Beatles: Rock Band will be available Sept. 9, 2009, simultaneously worldwide in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other territories for the Xbox®360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system from Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI), and the Wii™ home videogame console from Nintendo. The game will be compatible with all Rock Band instrument controllers, as well as most Guitar Hero® and other authorized third-party music video game peripherals and microphones. The Beatles: Rock Band is available for pre-order at www.bestbuy.com. For more information fans can visit www.thebeatlesrockband.com. 

About Reward Zone

Best Buy’s Reward Zone is one of the country’s leading consumer loyalty programs with approximately 30 million members nationwide. Becoming a Reward Zone program member is free, and consumers can take advantage of a wide range of exclusive rewards and benefits including Reward Certificates to be used towards future purchases at Best Buy as well as Member-Only Promotions and Special-Access Events. With annual purchases totaling $2500, members qualify for Reward Zone Premier Silver status and receive additional perks. Reward Zone Silver members can bank their points choosing to use them whenever they wish. They are also entitled to a 25% point bonus on all purchases, free shipping on bestbuy.com as well an extended return policy.

About Best Buy Co., Inc.

With operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and China, Best Buy is a multinational retailer of technology and entertainment products and services with a commitment to growth and innovation. The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates more than $40 billion annual revenue and includes brands such as Best Buy, Audiovisions, The Carphone Warehouse, Future Shop, Geek Squad, Jiangsu Five Star, Magnolia Audio Video, Napster, Pacific Sales Kitchen and Bath Centers, The Phone House and Speakeasy. Approximately 165,000 employees apply their talents to help bring the benefits of these brands to life for customers through retail locations, multiple call centers and Web sites, in-home solutions, product delivery and activities in our communities. Community partnership is central to the way we do business at Best Buy. In fiscal 2008, we donated a combined $31.8 million to improve the vitality of the communities where our employees and customers live and work. For more information about Best Buy, visit www.bestbuyinc.com.