This exciting new development will allow Xbox gamers to save their games and other content directly to a removable USB flash drive and then take it with them to other locations. Of course this is something that users of PC’s have been used to doing for years but not on the Xbox – well until yesterday!

Microsoft are set to launch their own range of branded USB memory sticks in May 2010 but you don’t have to wait until then to take advantage of this new feature because any USB flash drive with a capacity of more than 1GB and up to a maximum of 16Gb will do.

For the promotions industry this development opens up all sorts of new and interesting opportunities. The growth in the use of branded flash drives for promotional purposes has been immense over the last few years as companies recognise consumer demand for these flash drives and tap into this by offering free promotional flash drives pre-loaded with data to encourage use of their products.

We expect to see a number of companies now come forward and develop a range of branded USB flash drives pre-loaded with “teaser” content aimed specifically at the Xbox demographic. Up until now its been much harder for marketers to target the gaming community with a branded memory stick but this move by Microsoft is bound to get the Creative Directors of many advertising and promotional agencies thinking.

Of course USB flash drives don’t need to be restricted to boring rectangular designs that we’re all used to. If you really want to capture the imagination of the Xbox community what about a custom USB flash drive in the shape of one of the weapons from Call of Duty or if that’s too politically incorrect what about a custom USB flash drive in the shape of a Forza Motorsport key fob for the Forza Xbox game.

Expect a plethora of promotional and giveaway Xbox 360 flash drives to underpin the launch of forthcoming games titles.