With the launch of Modern Warfare 3, Activision kicked off a two-tier DLC strategy. Those who ponied up for a premium Elite subscription get the new content on a monthly basis, but the rest of the community will need to wait around for the maps to be bundled into traditional map packs at an unspecified later date.
Well, formerly unspecified, as Activision has just announced that the Modern Warfare 3 Content Collection #1 will be available on Xbox Live on March 20.
The first of four planned DLC bundles, Collection #1 features new multiplayer maps Liberation, Piazza, Overwatch, and Black Box, as well as the new Spec Ops co-op missions Black Ice and Negotiator.
Activision has also announced that 360 Elite subscribers will be getting another three content drops, featuring Black Box, Negotiator, and Black Ice, on March 13.
Microsoft has a timed-exclusivity arrangement for all of Modern Warfare 3's DLC, so it's not yet clear when we'll see Content Collection #1 on the PS3 and PC. If the delay is consistent with what we've seen so far for the Elite Content Drops, we can expect a lag time of about five weeks.