Mad Catz Now Principal Peripherals Partner For Rock Band

Accessories maker Mad Catz said Friday that it signed an agreement with music game developer Harmonix to be the principal peripherals partner for the Rock Band franchise worldwide. The multi-year licensing agreement means that Harmonix grants Mad Catz the international rights to produce and distribute Rock Band controllers for future versions of Rock Band wherever the game is sold. The next version of Rock Band is Rock Band 3, due holiday 2010 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii. "Serving as the principal Rock Band video game peripherals partner on a multi-territory basis leverages the powerful product development and global marketing and distribution capabilities Mad Catz has built,” said Mad Catz CEO Darren Richardson in a statement. Mad Catz has worked with Harmonix and publisher MTV Games over the past two years on Rock Band and Rock Band 2 peripherals. Richardson said that the deal means his company will "take on an even more integral role with the Rock Band franchise." Mad Catz designs and markets a wide array of video game accessories, including various kinds of game controllers, cables, mice, keyboards and other peripherals.