Xbox Live Rewards changes to 'Microsoft Rewards' in Canada, offers new ways to earn points

Xbox Live Rewards changes to ‘Microsoft Rewards’ in Canada, offers new ways to earn points

Microsoft has announced that its Xbox Live Rewards program for gamers will soon operate under the name of “Microsoft Rewards” in Canada. Along with the rebranding, Microsoft has also made a number of changes to how the rewards program actually works.

Microsoft says the Rewards points can be redeemed for Xbox digital gift cards, Skype Credits, Xbox Live Gold memberships, charitable donations and more.

In terms of earning them, the process has been somewhat changed. With Xbox Live Rewards, members would earn points from purchasing content from the digital Xbox Store. Now, in addition to earning points this way, Microsoft Rewards members will also be able to earn points for shopping on the online Windows Store and Microsoft Store retail locations.

As with Xbox Live Rewards, Microsoft Rewards members can earn points by purchasing various media on Xbox 360 and Xbox One, including digital games and their related add-on content, system themes and avatar items, movies, TV shows and more. However, certain items do not qualify, such as purchasing Xbox gift cards, in-game consumables, Xbox Live Gold memberships or subscriptions like Xbox Game Pass or EA Access.

There are two member tiers to Microsoft Rewards, Level 1 and Level 2. Xbox Live Rewards members will automatically be placed at the Level 2 tier through April 30th, 2018. Those who had a MyVIP Star Rank — which gives users back a percentage of purchases after spending at least $300 — will have their Level 2 status last through December 31st, 2018. However, myVIP itself is being retired with the introduction of Microsoft Rewards.

The full breakdown on how to earn points is as follows:

Level 1 members will get 1 point per dollar spent
Level 2 members will get 10 points per dollar spent
Level 2 members with an active Xbox Live Gold membership will receive an extra 10 points per dollar spent

Microsoft says Level 2 members can earn up to 150 points per day by searching the web, provided they stay signed in with their Microsoft accounts while doing so. Level 2 members can also save up to 10 percent when redeeming points for rewards and receive exclusive offers. In order to stay at Level 2, Microsoft Rewards members must collect 500 points each month.

Microsoft says all Xbox Live Rewards offers will end on September 30th. The company says that if they so choose, Canadian members have the exclusive opportunity to opt-out of Rewards before this date and not lose any pending credits in their account. Instead, users’ remaining credits balances will be deposited into their Microsoft account in the form the local currency, which can then be spent within 365 days.

For more information on Microsoft Rewards, Microsoft’s website also has a detailed FAQ.

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