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Microsoft's Strategy for XBox Infinity (NextBox, 720...) • Page 2

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  • ronuds 22 Jan 2013 20:12:09 20,529 posts
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    Jeepers wrote:
    beastmaster wrote:
    I gave up after "Seeing".

    Can I have a management summary please?
    In effort to win speculative battle for the lounge MS might release a console with dozens of features no one really wants, needs or can realistically use.

    Frunk seems like a nice chap tho.
    He never said it was a good strategy.

    Well, he may have, but I'm obviously not going to read all of that.

    Edited by ronuds at 20:13:02 22-01-2013
  • andytheadequate 22 Jan 2013 20:22:40 7,075 posts
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    beastmaster wrote:
    I gave up after "Seeing".

    Can I have a management summary please?
    Microsoft wants to control your living room and sell data about you to advertisers
  • SBfistfun 22 Jan 2013 21:17:37 116 posts
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    Good points ,interesting read :)
  • frunk 22 Jan 2013 21:30:05 18 posts
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    @ronuds
    He never said it was a good strategy
    I said it was a clever strategy. It is a good strategy for MS... For us... Not so much...

    I think Sony has the better strategy if you are not not interested in all that crap and just want to play good games. As a business decision it is not so good as allows MS to grab that living room space that Sony really needs to support the rest of their businesses.

    But even with a more cut down OS, Sony can probably do most of the useful stuff most of would use every day. And I guess Sony own a lot of the content (Movies & Music) that will be on the MS system, so they win there too.

    Different companies, different business models. MS need this to keep growing.

    Oh and thanks for thinking I am not a jerk... I tend to be a commenter rather than a forumer...

    Edited by frunk at 22:31:40 22-01-2013
  • Psychotext 22 Jan 2013 21:36:06 49,214 posts
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    Ehh I don't know, I could see myself using quite a lot of that.

    I'm old and broken though. I'm sure all you cool young hip things like as little functionality as possible.

    This post is sponsored by Apple and the iPhone 4S. Think different.

  • frunk 23 Jan 2013 08:52:36 18 posts
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    @Psychotext
    Ehh I don't know, I could see myself using quite a lot of that.
    Oh yeah... don't get me wrong. I think it's very cool and I would like it on my telly, but it is not really a "games focus". MS are more intersted in the living room and will use a wolf in sheep's clothing to get there. Once they establish themselves under your telly will they be bothered with games anymore? It is an expensive and loss leading business, full or risk and problems.
    I'm old and broken though. I'm sure all you cool young hip things like as little functionality as possible.
    Since the last time I coded professionally was a game on the Amiga I don't think I would ever describe myself as a cool, young or hip ;)

    Edited by frunk at 08:52:53 23-01-2013
  • Chopsen 23 Jan 2013 09:09:14 13,727 posts
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    I thought a metro-style interface with kinect controls would be a feature since I first saw Windows 8. Also the remote control from any device thing is something that I am hoping someone would do. Hadn't quite considered the implications of the hdmi thing. We're talking about old style TiVo box here, aren't we? :)

    Thanks for expressing interest in my signature!

  • RelaxedMikki 23 Jan 2013 09:18:40 753 posts
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    My management summary was:

    You can plug your satellite box in the back of the new XBox and then whizz little pictures of the channels around the telly by waving your hands, like in the movies.

    To be honest, I'm so easily wowed that I'd like that.
  • vizzini 23 Jan 2013 10:20:36 1,012 posts
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    @frunk

    It seems like a sensible, and well reasoned post, and probably, very close to Microsoft's real strategy, because it has a few risks they don't place much importance on.

    The first risk, is underestimating the unification Google (with youtube) is providing, in the TV space for app enabled TVs, and the pace at which that is improving, and TVs getting more computationally powerful, to do more things.

    The other obvious risk, I see, comes in the form of connection complexity. That problem hasn't really changed since the days of VCRs. If you need a TV shop to connect it up, for all but AV people and gamers, that puts consumers off, and you will get resistance from TV shops, if they are treading on TV companies toes.

    More people now live on their own, and more of them want an all-in-one devices for simplicity and elegance. Internet TVs are getting really cheap, while getting good, things like, integrating Freeview HD (DVB-T2) recording, with just the connection of USB storage, is enough for much of the market, that have already bought tablets.

    Simplicity, price and features, make this a difficult project for MS. Short of making HD, and 4K TVs, with integrated xbox 720s, and giving away free smartglass tablets as remotes, I don't think they have enough pull factor, or a simple enough offering.

    Edited by vizzini at 10:24:08 23-01-2013
  • jellyBelly 23 Jan 2013 10:57:19 115 posts
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    It seems that the OP is very close to MS's roadmap for the next 5-10 years. However i believe that the living room as the nexus of digital entertainment has diminished in line with the increased power efficiency of phones/tablets/ultrabooks etc, and the modern lifestyle in the western world.

    People tend to travel more for work and pleasure and, from my own personal experience, also tend to carry devices that connect them to an app store and their digital libraries in a manner of seconds. So you could argue that the large majority of 'digital entertainment time' is spent either outside the home or in the home but at various other rooms. If MS manages to make inroads with their portable range (not looking very positive at the moment Windows phone had 2.6% market share in US last quarter) then i would argue that it would have a very positive effect to their under the telly box. Otherwise people will stick to the services they tend to carry around, Google/Apple/Amazon.

    PSN:lumulata

  • frunk 23 Jan 2013 16:21:40 18 posts
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    @vizzini

    I don't think Google is making in-roads fast enough to be relevant in the TV space. Google TV has been out for years as a standalone box and it is expensive. The number of TV's with it built in is tiny - the TV/DVD manufacturers had a chance to unify but as usual they all did their own thing... Viera, Aquos, NetTV... every brand did it's own apps platform with very variable underlying hardware. So not only do you have platform fragmentation, within each platform you have further fragmentation as manufacturers tried to upsell each year. It's pointless chaos. Who in their right mind is going to dedicate resources to develop for that? Netflix, Lovefilm and some crap tends to be it.

    Google need to team up with someone like Sony to get their platform under TVs quickly in the form of PS3 & PS4 now to create a solid foundation or let MS run away with it.

    MS is making the connectivity issue a breeze - you just put their console the last thing in line with the TV... it will manage all the other devices and overlay it's goodness on top.

    MS are uniquely primed to fill this space as their new console will end up underneath 20 million tellies within a couple of years based on being an "okay" games console. Microsoft have then created a consistent and powerful platform on which to encourage Windows developers to create applications for. Once you get all those apps and snazzy Kinect functionality under the telly the box that does not play Xbox games becomes useful as it is a lower cost alternative (probably subsidized) to get the interface and apps (and ads) under the rest of the tellies in the house.

    Apple & Google don't have this advantage - they have to sell their box on their SmartTV features alone... not sneak it in as a games console which people are prepared to pay more for. They don't make games either and don't seem to have the interest to do so.

    Sony don't have the same ambition, interface or infrastructure to match MS in this area... but hell they know games, better than most.

    If Google got with Sony to put GoogleTV on the console then that would be a valid defence, but they would have to work on how it is controlled. Suddenly a Wii-U type tablet is a good idea :)

    Ironically Nintendo with the tablet were in an ideal position to do this but just have no interest in this type of thing.
  • frunk 23 Jan 2013 16:31:40 18 posts
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    @jellyBelly

    I think you have some very valid points there. You are right. Being tied to the living room is not so important these days.

    However it does represent the last great untapped mass market currently available.

    MS are boxing clever on SmartGlass - it works pretty well on any tablet or phone (Surface, iOS & Android) - so they are making no assumptions you have to have a fully MS enabled household to get the capabilities. So the initial spend to get all the capability is dramatically reduced - you just buy an XBox Infinity.

    Microsoft desperately needs to succeed in a market, ANY market, as they are pissing away all the existing ones: PCs to Apple (and soon Linux), Servers to Linux, Office Suite to Cloud providers like Google, Tablet/Phones to Apple/Google. They are fumbling around in "cloud land" miles behind Google & Amazon. If they keep going like they are they won't have any customers but slow moving corporations who don't like rapid change which will clip MS's ability to do anything.

    I would say the new XBox is MS's last gamble for a long term future - they have a lot riding on this one, it can't afford to fail and they know it. They will fight dirty and plough money into it.
  • RelaxedMikki 23 Jan 2013 16:34:44 753 posts
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    I love it when they fight dirty and plough money into it.

    C'mon Microsoft, make me want you!
  • LeoliansBro 23 Jan 2013 17:08:31 35,124 posts
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    How hard can it be to walk into your room and say 'TV on. Xbox on.' and have everything start up?

    How hard can it be to have this customised to your own voice, and your own choice of words?

    LB, you really are a massive geek.

  • frunk 23 Jan 2013 17:12:16 18 posts
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    @LeoliansBro
    How hard can it be to walk into your room and say 'TV on. Xbox on.' and have everything start up?

    How hard can it be to have this customised to your own voice, and your own choice of words?
    If what I have guessed turns out to be true - it would be piss easy and a rather compelling feature. It would sell buckets.
  • oceanmotion 23 Jan 2013 17:13:13 13,167 posts
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    Hopefully not having to wave for Kinect to see you.

    "Xbox"

    "Hello Batman"

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