So if the XB1's launch turns out to be a mess, could it possibly be a result of insider sabotage? Someone who want to split off the brand so MS's stocks soars?
I doubt it far as the insider sabotage goes. Doing so would only affect the stock even worse. Even if that was the case it would takes some time before stock were back up like in 2000s. Overall it would be huge gamble.
ValueAct and Elop possibly believe that is the reason why stocks are down. Its obvious why ValueAct would want to do such a thing. Especially given their two billion dollar investment. However Elop I am not so sure about. He's the guy that handed Nokia to MS.
Killing off Bing wouldn't be hard. However selling the Xbox division wouldn't be easy. Just look at Vivendi with Activision. Vivendi had a hard trying to sell Activision. Lucky for them Activision brought back itself. Xbox division probably 10 to 30 times as much as Activision if not more. What company has enough money to buy it? Apple probably does but I doubt they would throw most of that cash away just to buy it.
Hopefully all of this is just rumors, but regardless it doesn't give the informed consumer a great deal of long term faith in the stability of the Xbox One. That combined with the fact that Julie Larson Green hasn't said a word one way or the other about what is happening with the Xbox brand really makes me wonder. Hopefully, this is all nothing but only time will tell.
I can't be the only one who thought Bing became a complete embarrassment if not failure when it was discovered that it was using information from Google. How that served as example of MS's underhandedness. So it will likely just be allowed to die if cut away.
As for Xbox, sorry, but between the first Xbox mess ups then the RRoD the brand should have collapsed upon itself. Unless what dev houses it has are given some creative freedom and use it effectually, it wont last long without support from MS. Can't see anyone buying it either. Not without major restructuring.
The stock market has a huge influence over the decision tbat a company makes. If something isn't working then why try to keep fixing it if, in the long run, it will only let you down? I see the xbox brand dieing if they can not topple over sony and the playstation brand. They haven't quite toppled the ps3 yet and this generation is still going.
IMO if Xbox was a separate brand and had nothing to do with MS or its crazy twisted executives, it could be even more successful
Imagine Nintendo buying Xbox brand and having best of their exclusives, with Xboxlive as its only network and strong mature titles like Halo,Alan wake etc,
This is proper tin foil hat brigade BS. Lets spend billions on a game division then sweep it under the floor...
Erm... no.
Xbox is as important as ANY other division regardless of profitability, Microsoft see xbox as a way to stay relevant across multiple markets, it's vital to the overall vision that includes tablets/phones/PC etc, its an all in one vision...
Xbox does not have to make a single penny to remain a vital part of that eco system.
you're delusional if you think that a business will carry a section that hardly contributes to the whole business in anyway; monetary wise or otherwise
Xbox is Microsoft's pet project much like Zune and had the 360 sold like the original Xbox, Microsoft would've killed the brand again, much like Zune. Microsoft saw Xbox as a way of pushing Microsoft into the living room and since it isn't working they may well pull the plug.
Microsoft has a new toy now, in Nokia (and Surface) so we'll see what happens next.
if Xbox was such a vital component part of the business it wouldn't be as lacklustre as it is right now; they would have put their best executives at the helm and supported it a whole lot more than they currently do.
PlayStation (PSone/PS2/PS3) was very important to Sony as it pushed Sony engineered/backed media formats and technologies into the mainstream. while it didn't make much money, Sony as a whole benefited thoroughly.
can you say the same for Xbox? all it has done is lose money and just about challenged Sony (Xbox 360 was a great effort) when they were at their weakest. with PS4/Xbox One it is a return to the usual script, Sony selling multiples more than Microsoft.
The point DeathOfTheFanBoy was tring to make was that Microsoft doesn't need to see a big profit with the console division to be getting value back from it.
Their prime competitor is Apple & Microsoft wants to integrate them in every way possible.
Microsoft vs. Apple
They want to put people in front of their OS's in the living room, on their cell phone, at the computer, and anywhere else they can. The Apple business model was one with a "central hub", being the Apple Computer which could synergize with other Apple products (iPod, iPhone, Apple TV) creating additional value for utilizing more than 1 Apple product. Microsoft is attempting to emulate this model with their push to have a presence in the living room that coincides with a similar one on the computer, phone, and television.
They can hang onto a semi-profitable division if it means they have a greater value for consumers who can buy more of their products because they work well together. On top of them, it expands their brand and establishes loyalty (See 'Fanboys')
As for dragging Sony and the PlayStation into the argument, why? Yes, they drove consumers into newer media formats quicker than had they not adopted the technologies... but product life cycles were at a point where it needed to be done to begin with. Save the PS3 and Blu-Ray, which benefited customers in terms of value exchange the actual format wasn't necessary for this generation.
They were going to last generation because they wanted to do an entertainment console but with no games music & video that type of thing but decided to go with the gaming console .
We must be careful we want strong competition in the gaming market or otherwise if we had one bad generation we could lose gaming consoles for ever & I don't want to play games on a gaming rig oh no those keyboards no way .
I don't see them dong this. If they did, it surely wouldn't happen this next gen. This could be 7 years down the line, but I think their brand is so established now that it can stand on its own. It depends on leadership, if that's where the leadership wants to go.
The most I see happening is spinning off the xbox division. The brand has generated enough money and has good legs to stands as it's own.
I doubt it. The console itself was never the means for xbox to profit. It was the software and xbox live. If they can atleast half the sales of the 360 and have 50% of costumers subscribed to live how can they possibly fail.
With next gen consoles there is more details that has to be put into a game. With current gen games artists can skimp over some corners but when a game looks great on next gen consoles then if they skimp on a corner it'll stick out like a sore thumb. More time to make the same level at a higher level of detail which turns out for higher development costs. Or they could hire more artists but either way it costs more money to make the games.
The more powerful tech gets the more powerful AAA games are to make. It's easy to loose money in the gaming industry.
I agree that the brand is solid enough to be successful. It's been engineering choices in the 360 and the 720 that have been insanely costly. The consumers and the demand were there, but bad decisions kept them from truly cashing in.
So, with that in mind I can't imagine you wouldn't just spend the time and money to do it right now that a pipeline to consumers wallets is already in place.
Bing is trash just like IE. And if their choices with the Xbox One is anything to go by then good riddance there too, we don't need a company making consoles that want to restrict and DRM everyone to death. It would likely be good for M$. IMO of course
I agree. If ms wanted to beat sony so bad they would just buy them. They are worth at least 5 times what sony is. It is more believable to me that sony will go bankrupt then ms shelving the xbox. I will be happy when this stuff is over and I would never higher this ceo thats trying to sabatoge the ones launch. Ms has allready answered this but no one seems to print that only this outside investors opinion. A ceo will have to look at a company as a whole and thats what is happening but in the end bing and xbox are part of a good part of ms that alot people like and it does not bleed money as that lie about covering up xbox with android profits has been disproven as the way the company is structured now they are listed separately and it shows. Im done defending stupidity now back to making money.
If xbox is sold off? would the new company be required to support the xbox one or would microsoft have to until the console is dead? if the new company takes over the xbox one what happens with the azure cloud bc that sure as hell wont go with the xbox one... maybe it will be part of there deal to always have the cloud available to them but if not, isnt the cloud the whole selling point of the xbox one? to make match making smarter and better? to be able to have dedicated servers and pools of resources allocated through the cloud?
if you read my comment i said that its not part of xbox but it is the main point of the xbox one so what will happen when xbox is sold off will they allow the developers and the new owners of xbox access to their cloud or what?
I'm sure this will happen. It will be a very positive PR move for MS to kill something off after millions of people drop $500 on a piece of hardware.
Who actually makes these things up? Who actually believes this stuff?
Is this a Sony website? Or is this a multi-platform website? I have never seen such bias in articles or comments in my life. I personally can't wait for the 15th to come around. The articles and comments should even out at that point.
If the synergy that MS is attempting with Windows 8, Surface Tablets, Windows Phone, Xbox and Bing comes to fruition, then those worried investors are going to need to invest in wheel barrels to get all that profit to the bank. I believe that in a year or two, low info consumers will start to recognize the metro ui as well as Bing, because they will be on so many different devices.
Consider all of the blunders Microsoft did over the years that got them to this point; the abandonment of the original XBOX too early, the 360 lack of support for HD-DVD ( I have my reasons for that one), The Red Ring fiasco, Losing exclusives to Sony that came out on the 360 first, lack of first party exclusives after the first 2 years of the 360 life cycle, and all the PR mess the XB1 is in (thats a dumb ass name). If they are following Sony by gambling with this so called cloud computing, the cable box, and K-crap, they are going to lose. Either way if the XB1 is successful, Sony wins (Blu-Ray). If its not successful, Sony wins ( all of the devs will just make games for Sony, Nintendo if they stick around,
If they leave, I'm a bit worried where things go. Will they sell it to a company like Samsung? If so will Samsung embrace the industry like MS, attend E3, etc...?
If they drop it entirely, then will Sony and Nintendo take a step back? I don't want to see things like E3 go to the way side, it makes things exciting and keeps you on your toes.
I think we NEED a console war, and Sony vs Nintendo won't be that need. Apple sure as hell won't fill any shoes either.
Xbox will be here for the long haul, and still be owned by M$. New leadership is in place, now the Don has been removed the brand over this next year (2014) or so will ride out the s-storm and focus on improving.
New games will be announced, apps will find there way onto the service, and as always fan-boys will swap insults.
This is just another site plastering old shit on their page to get clicks.
Let's be clear on a few items that they seem to ignore.
1. Quote: "Just how much could Microsoft stand to benefit from shedding themselves of the Xbox? Well according to Rick Sherland doing so along with shedding Bing in conjunction with other moves could increase earnings 40%."
This potential 40% increase in earnings is a one time short term gain on cutting jobs and potential profits from the sale of that section of the business. This if of no interest to the majority of investors in MS as they are looking for long term gains in dividends which MS pays out regularly.
2. Quote: "The rumblings started off a few months ago when 1% Microsoft investor ValueAct (that may sound small, but amounts to around $2 billion) started making waves and calling on Microsoft to abandon the Xbox citing the fact that as a whole the Xbox has not been a profitable venture for Microsoft."
OK so now the article tries to make us think that ValuAct has such a huge share in the company that it can determine on its own the direction of MS. $2 Billion seems like a lot doesn't it? Not really. Bill Gates alone owns $9 Billion worth of MS and Steve Balmer owns about $3.5 Billion worth of MS. It is Bill and Steve's vision that has MS following the path that they are on and they are making money. Record profits for last quarter of over $18 Billion.
Here is what the board of directors has said in regards to rumors about a shift in strategy from MS and selling off its devices and entertainment division:
"Microsoft is now looking for a new CEO, though its board has said Ballmer's strategy will go forward. He has focused on making devices, such as the Surface tablet and Xbox gaming console, and turning key software into services provided over the Internet."
There are a few greedy make a quick buck investors out there that would like to see a sale of this division so that they could take the money and run. They are by far in the minority when it comes to share holdings.
The rest of what I have to say covers the BS about one of the potential new CEO's trying to do what this article discusses.
Just for some clarification as not everyone understands what the position of CEO is and where it fits in a company I will explain it here:
The CEO is the top administrator for the company ensuring it runs the way it is supposed to. Although he may have say in the direction that a company takes he does not have the power to make that determination. That determination is made by the board of directors to whom he reports. So the CEO reports to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors also has a leader who is called the Chairman of the Board.
Now currently the Chairman of the Board happens to be Bill Gates who at this time has made it known that he has no intention of relinquishing this position. Bill Gates also happens to be the largest shareholder in Microsoft. This is why Microsoft has the current vision it has as it is the one that Bill Gates decided on over 10 years ago.
Seeing how Elop's rumored vision is at complete odds with Bill Gate's and Steve Ballmer'svision of Microsoft I think that it is a fair bet that this is nothing more than rumor mongering on the part of media outlets to get people to click into their site.
Until Julie Larson Green opens her gob I'm not opening my wallet. It's as if the arrogance has transferred from Sony to Microsoft in the last 3 years. She thinks it's alright to get the 'boys' to do all the talking? Even people whose main language is Japanese have said more in English interviews than she has. Let her eat cake!
This is the funny thing. Sony as a company is tanking and there have been numerous articles and proof to back this up. Now it seems that whomever it is that is having a sh!t fit wants Microsoft to be in the same boat, ok. NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. Xbox brand unifies all devices and its a beautiful thing stop the hate. One more thing the PlayStation brand isn't Sonys bread winner, it's insurance. This is what is keeping them alive, home owners, life & car insurance. Sony products don't even sell in there own country. Something to think about people. There own people don't buy there sh!t. And that is fact. Enjoy gaming.
So if the XB1's launch turns out to be a mess, could it possibly be a result of insider sabotage? Someone who want to split off the brand so MS's stocks soars?
I don't see them dong this. If they did, it surely wouldn't happen this next gen. This could be 7 years down the line, but I think their brand is so established now that it can stand on its own. It depends on leadership, if that's where the leadership wants to go.
The most I see happening is spinning off the xbox division. The brand has generated enough money and has good legs to stands as it's own.
*tear*
I doubt it. The console itself was never the means for xbox to profit. It was the software and xbox live. If they can atleast half the sales of the 360 and have 50% of costumers subscribed to live how can they possibly fail.
I agree that the brand is solid enough to be successful. It's been engineering choices in the 360 and the 720 that have been insanely costly. The consumers and the demand were there, but bad decisions kept them from truly cashing in.
So, with that in mind I can't imagine you wouldn't just spend the time and money to do it right now that a pipeline to consumers wallets is already in place.