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Microsoft XBox (Games) Hardware

Allard 'Gets Real' With IGN 313

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the what-is-this-good-for-the-consumers-stuff dept.
schnikies79 writes "In an interview with IGN, Microsoft's Corporate Vice President Chief Architect J. Allard said he wants to work with competitors on the XBox 360. From the interview: 'I'm pro consumer on this one to the end,' says Allard. 'Anybody in my company who thought this was a bad idea to plug in Sony or Apple devices into this thing, I ended that conversation pretty quickly. This is the right thing to do for consumers. Once they invest $500 in their digital media library, you can't ask them to go buy a 360 music player and a 360 digital camera, and a 360...NO! They got their stuff. They're going to want to plug it in. We're going to be open here, guys. And if anything, I wish we could be more cooperative with the other companies that are doing those things. And if Sony or Apple were to call me up and say, "Hey, we want to some special things with the 360," I'm on it. I think it would not be in anybody's interest to say, we're not going to work with 360. It's good for them, it's good for us, and it's good for consumers.'"
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Allard 'Gets Real' With IGN More

Allard 'Gets Real' With IGN

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  • With an Attitude Like That... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Scoria ( 264473 ) <slashmail AT initialized DOT org> on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:34PM (#13866884) Homepage
    This is the right thing to do for consumers.

    I wonder who leaves Microsoft shareholder gatherings covered in rotten tomatoes!

    • I actually AGREE with you bud (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Work Account ( 900793 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:38PM (#13866918) Journal
      Read my previous thoughts on this matter here: http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=16623 3&cid=13866885 [slashdot.org]

      He may be telling the truth but I have a hard time believing him.

      Actually, I may believe him but it's hard to imagine 1 Microsoft guy doing something that every one of their MBAs and Gates himself do not want.

      Microsoft has been fighting open standards/interfaces for 2-3 decades.

      I think I speak for all of us when I see WE'LL BELIEVE IT WHEN WE SEE IT!

      • it just might work (Score:5, Insightful)

        by ReverendLoki ( 663861 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:58PM (#13867042)
        You might notice, though, that neither of the device examples he has given (cameras and mp3 players) are items that Microsoft is particularly known for. Sony, on the other hand, does have both of these and a large number of other electronic devices out there. If the PS3 is going to have a use for hooking these devices to it, they sure as hell will support Sony products.

        Really, they may be on to something here, and it could increase sales greatly. You could use iTunes to load up your iPod, and not own a "proper" PC or Apple computer. I don't think that they are trying to compete with Nintendo at all - Nintendo has taken the Revolution far enough afield, you could almost say it is in a different genre of games console from the MS and Sony products. That just leaves the PS3. Including a feature like this could help encourage consumers to adopt the XBox 360 before the PS3 release occurs. It might be a valid selling point for homes without a PC, allowing them to use those digital devices to their full extent without a PC.

      • Here it goes again (Score:4, Insightful)

        by Moraelin ( 679338 ) on Tuesday October 25, 2005 @01:43AM (#13869765) Journal
        Just for the sake of repeating what I've been saying all along, this is nothing new. No, I don't mean MS was ever sincerely for open standards, but then they never were sincerely all against them. Corporations do not have ideologies and crusades, they just want to make money, and are _supposed_ to be inconsistent (and arguably even sociopaths) in that pursuit. If what's good for business today or just in a different market segment is different from what was good for business yesterday, a corporation won't stick to an ideology and Right Way like a nerd would. They will do an about face and argue the exact opposite as if it always said that.

        And I don't mean only MS. Everyone. We even had sad cases like Sun which flipped between arguing opposites (e.g., between "we love Linux and open standards dearly" and "Proprietary Solaris is teh rule! Linux is teh suck! Die! Die! Die!") within the same day.

        And to that end:

        - when you're in the lead, you want closed proprietary (and preferrably patented) stuff to keep your customers locked in. You want a penned market segment that you can shear as you see fit. See patented connectors, the unix fragmentation, etc.

        - when you're the one fighting uphill, you want open standards and anything that'll let you have a go at everyone else's penned customers

        And MS in the console market is finding itself fighting uphill against Sony. (Which, as the conspiracy theory goes, was always MS's target. Nintendo was more like collateral damage.) Guess what they'll want? Right. Open standards and interfaces.

        It's not that MS wouldn't like you to be locked in the XBox camp. It's that the priority now is: they don't want you locked in Sony's camp. That's all.

    • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:43PM (#13866957)
      Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • Wow, Microsoft can't get away with anything on Slashdot. A little less knee-jerk bashing, please.

      Why do we have this attitude that "what's good for consumers is bad for shareholders?" It smells of zero-sum economics, which I think is a load of crock. Could it possibly be that Microsoft, in persona J. Allard, recognizes a demand (i.e., an opportunity to make money) and wishes to supply that demand?

      To me, that's that mark of a great business leader, to take advantage of the market's demand, as opposed to tryi

  • Is Allard still working for MS today? (Score:3, Funny)

    by SpaceLifeForm ( 228190 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:35PM (#13866891)
    It's very difficult to believe what he is saying as it comes from MS.

    I hope for the sake of the consumers, that he get's his way.

  • Satire? (Score:5, Funny)

    by RealNitro ( 776928 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:36PM (#13866899) Homepage
    I bet it'll turn out to be satire in the end.

  • Large 'IF' (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ackthpt ( 218170 ) * on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:36PM (#13866905) Homepage Journal
    And if Sony or Apple were to call me up and say, "Hey, we want to some special things with the 360," I'm on it. I think it would not be in anybody's interest to say, we're not going to work with 360. It's good for them, it's good for us, and it's good for consumers.'"

    For Apple or Sony to approach him is a very large 'IF'.

    Sony wants to sell its PS[n], while it may be good for the camera end of Sony or the Music end of Sony, they're probably not so far apart these days as to assist a competitor of the video game console end of Sony.

    Microsoft's Corporate Vice President Chief Architect J. Allard said he wants to work with competitors on the XBox 360.

    "Come in to my parlour", said the spider to the fly.

    • Re:Large 'IF' (Score:3, Interesting)

      by GoodOmens ( 904827 )
      However IF apple DID partner on this it would be a very devestating blow to the Sony PSP.

      I mean the psp is allready in enough trouble as it is...

      I could see something like this working, only in turn as a marketing ploy so you would buy more 360's then PSP's ....

      • Re:Large 'IF' (Score:3, Funny)

        by GweeDo ( 127172 )
        How exactly do the 360 and PSP compete? I mean...do you want to lug your 360 and an LCD + Speakers around with you to listen to music???
      • I think it would be obvious how ipod integration would help Microsoft. The benefit is kinda hidden for Apple. Apple has a little hesitation toward Microsoft integration. Apple made it so that you can plug in the ipod and have it load itunes on a PC. Apple didn't make it so that you could run windows media player. If apple wanted their ipod to hook up to your tv or your computer, they would not trust Microsoft to control that device.

  • hmm... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Shads ( 4567 ) *
    Strange, if microsoft feels that way why don't they release controllers or cameras for the playstation2? Oh that's because they wouldn't want to risk the industry standardizing on anything but their product. Could that be the same reason apple and sony aren't jumping at the opportunity jump on the 360 bandwagon... maybe.
    • i dont think thats what Allard is getting at.

      First of all, putting out an xbox controller for the PS2 is too small of a market to warrant doing so. Besides the PS2 controller is the best controller ever made. Sony would have better success at selling PS2 controllers for xbox :)

      I have a convertor for the ps2 controller for xbox btw. I also have a usb converter to plug ps2's dual shock controller into my pc.

      What Allard is saying, if you use brand X mp3 player, MS is open to supporting it for the consumers sak

    • Re:hmm... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Gothic_Walrus ( 692125 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @05:02PM (#13867068) Journal
      You're comparing ferrets to Spain.

      Microsoft isn't talking about having Apple and Sony release products specifically FOR the 360. What they want is to have the 360 be compatible with what you've already got - with your iPods, with your Nikon cameras, with products that aren't neccessarily all Microsoft-branded. At no point in time did Allard - or anyone else - encourage the competition to make 360 exclusive devices, although I'm sure they would love to see that happen. They're preaching openness; whether or not that's what we'll end up getting is still very much up in the air.

      Besides...what's the point of having a media center sans the media? Microsoft doesn't make cameras or music players, and trying to enter those markets at this point would probably be just as costly as the first Xbox eventually was.

    • Who's being proprietary, then? no, it's not like how the original Xbox controllers were USB with a proprietary plug, the 360's controllers will use STANDARD USB connections and interface. you can plug them straight into your PC *BY DESIGN*.

  • Sounds like he has other things to worry about (Score:5, Interesting)

    by CuteVlogger ( 925400 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:37PM (#13866914) Homepage
    Q: How about Microsoft? Will you be shipping your first-party games a week before launch?
    Allard: I don't know. Haven't certified a game yet. There is no game in manufacturing yet, that's the only thing I can attest to. And when we do, you know, retailers did that a little with Xbox, it's going to be a retail by retail decision. I don't think we're doing anything to try and coordinate that.

    Haven't certified a game yet? And launch is less than a month away? Sounds like there's going to be some supply problems in the very near future.

    • Re:Sounds like he has other things to worry about (Score:5, Insightful)

      by NekoXP ( 67564 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:57PM (#13867028) Homepage
      Microsoft's certification is a GOOD thing. If they are delaying games to get them through the certification process - like drivers going through basic WHQL compatibility and regression testing - then they will arrive on your doorstep with less bugs.

      This means a better reception for your console!

      If Certification is granted and manufacturing can start the next day (we will assume Microsoft have some dedicated factories for this and won't be put at the bottom of the list for some subcontracted DVD fab) then they can print hundreds of thousands per day, and millions per week.

      Launch units are meant to top 3 million WORLDWIDE, so they may start certifying them next week for production, and still be ready with every title of a 20-title line-up with equal share of the market.

      You might get shortages of the standalone copies of popular titles but.. that's life on launch day. Since most retailers are bundling, the popularity of the titles is defined on what they THINK they can sell - and they have already been "sold" as preorders to retailers. This would determine the numbers they NEED to produce.

      I would think launch day is the BEST time to make a fast production run of exactly the right amount, to cut down on wastage and warehouse stock at all levels.
      • Microsoft's certification is a GOOD thing. If they are delaying games to get them through the certification process - like drivers going through basic WHQL compatibility and regression testing - then they will arrive on your doorstep with less bugs.

        It sounds like you're making a LOT of assumptions here.
        1. That the delay is on Microsoft's end.
        2. That something is actually being done during this delay.
        3. That the thing being doing is some sort of quality/bug testing
        4. That FAST production runs don't cost money.
        5. e

  • The greatest trick... (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    One of Microsoft's Corporate Vice Presidents saying the following,

    It's good for them, it's good for us, and it's good for consumers.

    Makes me think...

    The greatest trick the devil ever played was convincing the world he does not exist.

  • Microsoft educates the consumer (Score:5, Funny)

    by Sam Haine '95 ( 918696 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:39PM (#13866924)
    *kicks consumer in the nuts*

    "Hey buddy, I'm not kicking you in the nuts!"

    *kicks consumer in the nuts*

  • If the 360 is so consumer-friendly... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by wheresdrew ( 735202 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:39PM (#13866925) Journal
    ...then why are the games and system region-coded?

    • Several rationalizations for region coding:

      • Different entities hold exclusive licenses in different regions for a given copyrighted work. For instance, one company owns all the Jump characters in Japan, but different U.S. anime distributors own characters from different series in North America, and that's why Jump Superstars. Publishers of games based on these territorially-licensed franchises demand region coding so that they don't have to compete amongst themselves within a given market.
      • A game's under
    • For the same reason that DVD's are: because publishers demand it. TBH, publishers would be very relucant to produce content for the xb360 (or sony, or nintendo) if the manufacturer didn't let them play their little lets-gouge-consumers-who-live-in-different-countri es game.

  • Honto ni? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Dante Shamest ( 813622 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:39PM (#13866926)

    If he really was concerned about the consumers, why not create products to plug into the Playstation/PSP or the IPod?

    Forgive my cynicism, but I think the main reason is because Apple's IPod and Sony's Playstation have a much larger share than Microsoft's XBox. Of course, Microsoft would want to play "fair", since it'll benefit the XBox 360 more than it would benefit the products of the other companies.

  • Why not? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by BrGaribaldi ( 710238 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:39PM (#13866927) Homepage
    Why shouldn't this happen? Microsoft is never going to be on the forefront of the device market. Why not make it compatible with Apple and Sony devices? Then they can stick it to Apple and say they're open with their technologies, why is iTunes and iPod such closed devices. They are not losing market share with this ploy, but they are going to get a lot of positive PR.

  • Wow... I'm impressed... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by the_skywise ( 189793 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:40PM (#13866931)
    That is, if you don't start charging a license fee to plug into the 360... Then we'll see how many other companies produce products for it.
  • what does the slashdot crowd do when, shock and horror, after spending years repeating the same litany of simple lessons about intellectual property, interoperability, secure code, etc., that someone in the industry actually wakes up and starts listening and says "yeah, you're right" and changes their practices accordingly?

    i think some of you have based your entire understanding of reality on the fact that these guys will just never get it

    well, and i'm not saying this 360 move is it or not, what if someday they actually get it?

    a 500,000 ton tanker has difficulty changing course, but, lo and behold, that doesn't mean it can't actually change course, SLOWLY, but inevitably

    these guys just might come around to the slashdot crowd's way of thinking after all

    then what will the slashdot crowd do? what will be their purpose for living then? LOL

    • Re:what does the slashdot crowd do (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Tetard ( 202140 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:50PM (#13866992)
      How naive.

      Microsoft wants to be in the living room. Badly. They'll be "open" when it comes to peripherals, but their real goal is to be the digital hub that Apple has been talking about for years. And the hope to do that with the 360. So of course it will be compatible with that Canon digital camera, and will accept videos from that Sony camcorder. But the software inside ? In your dreams.
      • Precisely. MS wants their 360 to be a livingroom peripheral hooker. You'll be able to put your data in, but you'll pay for it dearly, and you won't be able to get it back.
      • What is this "digital hub that Apple has been talking about for years"? Care to give a reference? All I know is that Steve Jobs has been saying for years that PC does not belong in the family room. He also talked about how nobody wants to watch TV on their PC.

        On the otherhand, Microsoft has been working on digital hub strategy for close to 10 years.

        Care to elaborate? Or are you just a knee-jerk Apple guy?

      • Couldn't agree more on MS wanting to be in the living room. They're realizing that everybodies entertainment has pretty much gone digital, and since game consoles are basically computers these days, MS is gambling on people wanting access to all their media in one COMFORTABLE location. Let me reemphasize that....COMFORTABLE!

        Most people (aside from us geeks) don't make their computing station that comfortable because they do not spend that much time there as say...the living room. MS wants everybody using

    • It's a lot like the people complaining about the smell in New Jersey. Some people say it's OK once you get used to it, the rest complain, but either way everyone and their grandchildren will be long dead by the time it smells any better.

    • ...[Microsoft] just might come around to the slashdot crowd's way of thinking after all...

      They might... but, quoting a time-honored philosopher, it will be "easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle..."

    • a 500,000 ton tanker has difficulty changing course, but, lo and behold, that doesn't mean it can't actually change course, SLOWLY, but inevitably

      Sure, but just because the cook announces "Let's go to Norway!" doesn't mean the ship's changing anything.

      See, we've all gotten used to Microsoft (and Intel) talking about doing things. They say lots of things! They're either bashing some competitor, or talking about some future release, it always ends up in some horrific mess that is definitely NOT good for

  • Wow... (Score:3, Informative)

    by inkdesign ( 7389 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:43PM (#13866951)
    "They're being a little sloppy with the CPU, they're being a little sloppy with the discs, they're being a little sloppy with their formats and compression to make launch."

    Wow man, thanks for pushing me to the other side of the fence on the "Buy a 360" or not question.

    Seriously though, I played one at Walmart the other day, and the Kong game had terrible aliasing problems. Edges on most everything looked very, very blocky, and I was surprised they put the game out there looking like that.

  • 1. Embrace (Score:5, Insightful)

    by dbc ( 135354 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:44PM (#13866960)
    2. Extend
    3. Extinguish

    Or has everyone forgotten?
    • I don't think so. Or rather, if this kills off the PS2 and the like, then so be it.

      Allard is essentially saying "Lets open up the hardware platform" the same way most of us have been begging tech companies to do for a while because it's better for consumers, it eliminates lockin, yadda yadda. Since that is a competitive advantage, then by all means, let them kill their competition

  • Sun Open Document (Score:5, Funny)

    by aero6dof ( 415422 ) <aero6dof@yahoo.com> on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:44PM (#13866964) Homepage
    I say someone from Sun should call him up trying to get a 360 OpenDocument viewer going.

  • All competitors or just some? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:46PM (#13866968)
    I guess my real question is: will they allow people to run Linux or BSD on the 360 without having to hack the hardware?
  • Noted in the article is that a lot of developers are already complaining about having to squeeze things onto a DVD ("We're not where we'd like to be with compression" is his reply). That makes Sony's Blu-Ray move look pretty smart, as it seems like a next-gen system should have next-gen storage abilities.

    Again you have to wonder why Microsoft did not wait a little until they could ship with HD-DVD drives. The whole thing feels really rushed and experimental.
    • The devs will mostly make do with 7.9GiB, which at 512MiB per level, is enough for 15 levels. If they need more, they'll go dual-disc. I wonder what the cost difference is for manufacturing 2 DVDs compared to 1 Blu-ray? At least for a few years, probably about the same.

      I don't have to wonder why MS didn't wait.
      1. The technology isn't ready yet for massive, cheap manufacturing.
      2. A very small percentage of the potential market actually cares about HD-DVD.
      3. HD-DVD movies will take time to come out.
      4. Gett

  • tough for PS3 (Score:2, Interesting)

    by CDPatten ( 907182 )
    Although we will have to wait and see Allard certainly is saying the right things. More importantly, Sony has a slightly more powerful machine, but MS has XBox live. Any gamer knows, live is pretty sick, and PS3 has no answer to it. As more details are revealed about both systems, xbox seems to be more conducive to both large and small developers, again, bad for sony.

    PS3's big plus over the xbox is Blu-ray (if it takes off). However, if the telco and cable company's multi-billion dollar push for strea

    • Re:tough for PS3 (Score:3, Informative)

      by SScorpio ( 595836 )
      >Although we will have to wait and see Allard certainly is saying the right >things. More importantly, Sony has a slightly more powerful machine, but MS has >XBox live. Any gamer knows, live is pretty sick, and PS3 has no answer to it. >As more details are revealed about both systems, xbox seems to be more >conducive to both large and small developers, again, bad for sony.

      Everytime I've seen Live it looks like nothing more than a glorified chat room that acts as a gaming hub. The single s

  • Hmm.... (Score:5, Funny)

    by borawjm ( 747876 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:49PM (#13866987)
    They're going to want to plug it in. [...] And if Sony or Apple were to call me up and say, "Hey, we want to some special things with the 360,"

    and I'm sure they are going to tell them where they can plug it in.

  • Allard = Baby Bill (Score:5, Interesting)

    by tyates ( 869064 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:49PM (#13866989) Homepage
    Back in the day, Allard was one of the first guys to champion Microsoft's adoption of TCP/IP. Later, he got pulled into "Project 42", a disastrous attempt to come up with some Windows monstrosity that was supposed to counter thin-client platforms (like Java) but never got off the ground despite its team of fifteen hundred. After that he took a leave of absence, and only agreed to come back if he got to lead the development efforts for the Xbox and do it free of bureaucracy. They call Allard and some of the other guys like him "Baby Bills".
  • a MS rep says something positive getting posted on Slashdot is the equivilant of posting a "book 2 is boring" article on TheOneRing.net

    No suprise on the reaction. Group dynamics maintained.

    -Rick
  • for Allard to become the new Microsoft CEO? I for one WOULD welcome this corporate Overlord!
  • Did... did we just enter Bizarro World? I'm confused... Does Bizarro Microsoft give its programs out for free and have everyone drooling over them while trying to fight the evil Bizarro Linux empire from patenting air?

    Should I be expecting a hot super model to show up naked at my door step?

    Hell, in Bizarro World, why not!

  • From TFA (Score:5, Interesting)

    by payndz ( 589033 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:58PM (#13867041)
    Basically what happens when you get final hardware late, you're sloppy. With all deference to the developers, you've got to take every out you can and so they're not applying all their talents, as they will next year and the year after to get every little bit they can out of it. They're being a little sloppy with the CPU, they're being a little sloppy with the discs, they're being a little sloppy with their formats and compression to make launch. And next year, you'll see that they tighten that up so they can get more out of the system using the same disc capacity, using the same compression, and the same art tools, and so they'll get a lot more out of the system next year.

    Way to sell your new system. I don't know about anyone else, but I read that as 'We're really rushing this thing to market to beat Sony, and the early games might be as botched as that EA football game on the PSP, but hey! In a year from now, we'll probably have figured out how to do some really neat stuff!' And then adding on the next page, 'In the meantime, you can buy all these cool customised fascias! That's gotta be worth something, right?'

    • Nah... It's really nothing different from the other consoles. The first games don't have the experience with the compilers or dev tools necessary to really get everything out of the box. The second and third rounds of games get better, with the devs really getting things going right before the platform gets upgraded.

      Compare a new PS2 release with something that came out at launch, (depending on the titles) they don't even look like they were for the same system.

  • Can't beat em, join em. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by slittle ( 4150 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:58PM (#13867045) Homepage
    you can't ask them to go buy a 360 music player and a 360 digital camera, and a 360...NO!
    1) Microsoft missed the boat on that shit already.
    2) Microsoft likely don't care, so long as your boats dock at their port.
    3) The last thing Microsoft needs is for Apple to succeed with their digital hub thing. Giving up the peripheral market they never had to competitors in order to maintain their control of the 'hub' is probably A-OK.
    4) Peripherals are more competitive and diverse than whatever you plug them into anyway. I doubt Microsoft really want that kind of stress.
    5) Mind/marketshare matters more at this point than total control, and if people know the 360 works with everything, they'll be more likely to buy one. Once they get people hooked on their goodies, it's much easier to fuck them over. People are more likely to buy the next XBox than some other thing if they already have one.

  • Walk It / Talk It (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Doc Ruby ( 173196 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @04:59PM (#13867047) Homepage Journal
    What's he doing specifically to ensure the XBox is different than every previous "embrace and extend" Microsoft campaign? What's not different is that he's telling the media the MS wants to be "open, consumer-driven, interoperable", that they've "learned the lesson", that "this time will be different". Talk is cheap - vendor lockin is expensive.
  • Attn: Console Competitors,

    We are the Microsoft. We will add your technological and biological distinctiveness to our own. If that's okay with you.

    Sicerely,
    Microsoft Borg Collective.
  • You know, do you want it to be a holographic experience that you play in your bathtub?

    Yes. Yes. Yes.
  • In related news, Microsoft's Corporate Vice President Chief Architect J. Allard was abruptly fired today by CEO Steve Balmer for conduct unbecoming a Microsoft Executive. Said Balmer, "I don't get his guy. What part of 'we need to kill them! Bury them!' did he not hear at the last staff meeting?"
  • And if Sony or Apple were to call me up and say, "Hey, we want to some special things with the 360,"

    Dear Microsoft,

    Would Blu-Ray count as special?

    Your boossum buddy,

    -Sony
  • I think we're all missing the key point of the article...

    I mean, we are making a system to play videogames. It is a rectangular box with a power supply that hooks up to the TV with a game controller. (Laughter.) What do you want? You know, it's an interesting question. You know, do you want it to be a holographic experience that you play in your bathtub? We could have made it different...

    Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the third itineration of the Xbox!

  • Pure Evil! (Score:3, Funny)

    by Darius Jedburgh ( 920018 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @05:10PM (#13867121)
    In one fell swoop they've put reverse engineers out of action. Now if you want to make an Apple or Sony device interoperate with an X-Box 360 you won't have to hack your device or install a mod-chip. How selfish! They put a whole industry out of business. How typical of Microsoft to shaft people this way.
  • And if you go too far, and you try to change the category altogether and we give you a wacky controller, or I'm going to give you wacky games that you don't really understand, and we're going to market it or price it in a wacky way, I think we would have been very much a failure.

    I woNder If the geNTlEmaN DOes have somebody in mind with that statement?

  • Microsoft is not, nor ever should be "pro-consumer (Score:3, Interesting)

    by keraneuology ( 760918 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @05:11PM (#13867132) Journal
    Microsoft exists to make a profit. It does not exist for any other reason. The sole reason for the corporation is to make money for Gates and the stockholders. Period. This is the only reason any corporation exists - Exxon, McDonald's, Apple, Boeing, GM, Dow Corning, Intel, AMD... they exist to make money.

    So why would a corporation try to spin themselves as "pro-consumer"? One of two reasons:

    • To make people think they are pro-consumer so they buy more of their products

    • To be able to claim to governments, judges and juries that they are pro-consumer

    It really is that simple. Any corporation that isn't seeking to maximize profits for its shareholders is liable for all kinds of nasty lawsuits. The only question is how many dirty tricks are shareholders willing to put up with, how nasty of a reputation can be put forth before non-captive consumers turn their backs, and just how vicious can they become before the government steps in and smacks their noses with a rolled up legal code?

    • "So why would a corporation try to spin themselves as "pro-consumer"? One of two reasons:

      To make people think they are pro-consumer so they buy more of their products

      To be able to claim to governments, judges and juries that they are pro-consumer"

      Did it ever cross your mind that actually BEING pro-consumer could mean more profit?

      Not everything is "spin" or an "illusion." Maybe this is Microsoft's thinking here. The fact you think this is spin (and I bet if Nintendo came out with the same statement, nobody w

      • Did it ever cross your mind that actually BEING pro-consumer could mean more profit?

        Yes, hence my comment "To make people think they are pro-consumer so they buy more of their products".

        The officers of a corporation have a primary duty to the shareholders. First, foremost and above all else. If they happen to craft a pro-consumer image in the process great for them, even better for me. But any pro-consumer or anti-consumer strategies are only means to an end. They aren't really "pro-consumer" any mor

  • Its Very Simple (Score:2, Interesting)

    by kpat154 ( 467898 )
    The reason for this is really very simple: MS was late to the market and as a result they weren't able to dominate the market. By opening up the XBox to play other formats they are opening up the market for their device. Microsoft hasn't changed its stripes. They only want to work with their competitors when its financially beneficial for them to do so.

  • "Pro-Consumer"? Hah, what about Video? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by sprayNwipe ( 95435 ) on Monday October 24, 2005 @05:25PM (#13867211) Homepage
    Nice to see that this "pro consumer" attitude unfortunately doesn't extend to the video parts of the Xbox 360, which require a Windows Media Centre PC and only supports WMV.

    If they'd just allowed the usual video formats, they'd have a sure fire winner. For now, I'm sticking to my Xbox with XBMC as my HTPC.
  • I read that whole article. He has a bunch of sentence fragments and an occasional run on sentence in his replies. It's like he has seriously horrific ADD or he had just done a huge line of Bolivian marching powder. Here's an example.

    Q: What kind of themes will there be? Are they only first-party ones? Allard: Oh, no. There are many others. There's a Dead or Alive one, and EA tiles. Same thing with gamer tiles. There's Tony Hawk American Wasteland, so we're opening it up. The tricky part is, to be frank,

  • Catch 22: It doesn't benefit Microsoft unless it benefits consumers and other companies accept it, but it doesn't benefit consumers and other companies unless it doesn't compete and, indeed, bolster's MS's portfolio.

    Is this guy for real?

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