LOS ANGELES -- Microsoft confirmed yesterday (this morning, Singapore time) that the Xbox One will launch in Singapore and the rest of Asia in "late 2014". The Xbox One is expected to be launched in 21 countries - including the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia and Finland - during the year-end holiday season. Speaking with TODAY on the sidelines of the E3 gaming convention, Mr Alan Bowman, Microsoft Xbox 360 Regional Vice-President for Retail, Greater Asia region, confirmed reports that the Xbox One would be launching much later in Asia. “We have a deliberate strategy in terms of when we launch a product, I think traditionally with previous versions we have a staged approach,” said Mr Bowman. “One of the things that is key for us is to make sure we have the right localised experiences for customers.” Singapore generally does not require language localisation, as the majority of local gamers do their gaming in English, but Mr Bowman explained that Microsoft aims to also provide “rich TV experiences” beyond just gaming. “The plan is to make sure we have those experiences whether it’s in Singapore or Korea,” he said. To do so, Mr Bowman said that Microsoft is looking to work with “the right content providers” to provide “great localised content”, even in non-English speaking launch markets like Russia. For the 21 launch markets Microsoft has announced, the only content partner named is the NFL from the US, but Microsoft has said that more will be announced closer to the launch date. “As part of our strategy going into those launch markets, we’re going to have locally relevant content from them,” he said. Mr Bowman also shrugged off worries that the Playstation 4, if it launches in Asia at the same time as the US, will have a whole year of gaining market share before the Xbox One. He noted that the Xbox 360 is the top selling console in the Asian market and that the Xbox platform experienced 20 per cent growth last year. “We’re very confident about the market in Asia, and how we’ll continue to be the dominant platform,” he said. “The future looks really positive for us.” The just-announced new-look Xbox 360 also has no fixed launch date, but Mr Bowman confirmed that it will retail at the same price the current Xbox 360. Countries outside of Xbox’s usual markets such as Singapore, South Korea, India, Hong Kong and Taiwan also might have to wait even longer, if the console ever officially launches on their shores, as Mr Bowman said that Microsoft currently has no plans to expand the Xbox into other markets in Asia. When asked if Microsoft felt that the Asian market was not as important as the US and European markets, Mr Bowman emphasised that that was not the case. Microsoft highlighted the use of Japan-made Metal Gear Solid V as the first title Microsoft showcased during the Xbox One press conference before E3 as indicative of how important Asia was. However, they refused to announce anything regarding a Japan launch date for the console. “We just tend to launch in the US first,” said Mr Bowman, adding that that was “the company strategy”. “Asia is a big region with a lot of markets ... (And) remains critically important.”