The ipowergames 2008, the original video games competition designed by Packard Bell for the gaming communities, are taking place in eight European countries this year: Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the United-Kingdom and Switzerland.

This second edition of the Packard Bell Trophy follows on the August 2007 finals which were held in Lisbon (Portugal) and have seen the triumph of the German team in all kind of disciplines.

The ipowergames 2008 will take place in the temple of sport and entertainment: the Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy, during the Paris Gaming Show the 4th, 5th and 6th of July. The final will be broadcasted on Bercy’s large video screens. But first, gamers from these 8 countries will have to win their qualification through a set of offline and online national tournaments.

The ipowergames 2008 Trophy is open to all the gamers, be they enthusiasts or pros. This is a unique opportunity for the best and most motivated players to compete for a major European title in the best possible gaming setup, in front of thousands of spectators.

The ipowergames 2008 sport initiative is built around the famous “Packard Bell ipower”, the official PC of the “Electronic Sports World Cup” (ESWC) and the Paris Gaming Show. The ipowergames 2008 aspires to be both popular and spectacular, reflecting the ipower, the ultimate gaming machine designed especially for the gamers aiming for the highest performance provided by the best on-board technologies.

“It really matters to Packard Bell to move towards gamers and offer them a genuine and well respected Trophy”, said Hugues Gontier, Marketing & Communication Director Europe of Packard Bell. “The ipowergames 2008 is both a celebration at a European scale and an opportunity for us to share ideas with the gaming communities in order to bring them products meeting their expectations”.

Two multiplayer video games with strong and supportive communities will be played during the ipowergames 2008. “Call of Duty 4”, a team-action game developed by Infinity Wards and published by Activision – “Race 07”, a racing simulation game developed by Simbin. Go to www.ipowergames.net starting May 20th, to find all the details about the national qualifiers for Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, and also to sign up to the online qualifier for Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands. The 56 national champions (one 5-player COD4 team and 2 Race07 drivers for each country) will be invited during 3 days in Paris by Packard Bell (travel, 3-star hotel, gourmet dinner) to compete for the ipowergames 2008 final on the Paris-Bercy main stage during the Paris Gaming Show.

Schedule of operations:

Registration to the online tournaments
Tuesday, May 20th > Sunday, May 25th

Playoff stage
Tuesday, May 27th > Thursday, June 12th

National Finals
June 14th, 15th and June 21st, 22nd

ipowergames Finals
From Friday, July 4th to Sunday, July 6th in Paris-Bercy

Official Website: www.ipowergames.net


About Packard Bell

Operating in Europe since 1991, Packard Bell is one of the leading home PC brands in Europe. As consumers have become more tech savvy and discerning, and the world of personal computers and home electronics have converged, Packard Bell has continued to extend its brand and expand its range of products, which today includes leading-edge desktops, notebooks and digital entertainment solutions (MP3 players, home networking, GPS and storage). Packard Bell’s unswerving dedication to the consumer market is embodied in its recognized ability to anticipate and meet the ever-changing users’ needs.

For more information, please visit www.packardbell.com