160°

Microsoft Could Charge Monthly For a Web Browser Next Gen

Microsoft's Xbox Live service has many exciting features available for the Xbox 360. However some of the online features are limited and stripped down versions of a more superior online service.

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guerillaplay.com
ComboBreaker5264d ago

Microsoft probably would.
Microsoft probably would...

awiseman5264d ago (Edited 5264d ago )

No, it would be integrated into the current Gold subscription.

Also he sounds like hes into sports, we should inform him that espn channel is free to all Xbox members.

gypsygib5263d ago

...who pay for a gold account and live in America.

Forbidden_Darkness5263d ago

Yeah, by then the subscription for XBL Gold would be $100, so they pretty much would be charging for it.

specialguest5263d ago (Edited 5263d ago )

MS hikes up the Gold membership by $10(which already happened), and will somehow convince/manipulate users that MS is doing it out of generosity, while the user not realized that they've pretty much pre-paid for this feature through the price hike. Most users will rejoice and thank MS, and defend it to the extreme.

Jezuz5263d ago

hahahah. At least the money's going to charity right? right????!?

jay25264d ago

You greedy........................ ..........................

People.

Sonyslave35264d ago

This guy sound like a sport fan which mean he probably go on espn.com they will tell you if u can get it or not.

Espn3 is free to all it not MS fault u don't have espn3

ActionBastard5264d ago

Then why offer it as part of the subscription you pay MS for?

jack who5264d ago (Edited 5264d ago )

"The ESPN feature for Xbox live is full of holes and deception. First off you must be a subscriber of an ESPN affiliated provider and be a gold member to have access to live ESPN broadcasts. This is something Microsoft has failed to mention. I am a subscriber of Qwest DSL Internet service which is not affiliated with ESPN and have no access to live games thru my Xbox live service gold account. I simply have access to 1-2 minute clips of random ESPN news."

this has nothing to do with Microsoft its ESPN and your ISP doing

http://espn.go.com/espn3/af...

Biggest5263d ago

If his ISP provided access, could he watch ESPN3 on his Xbox 360 without purchasing a gold membership? That has nothing to do with ESPN or his ISP.

gamingdroid5263d ago

Duh!

Seriously, can you get free games on PSN Plus if you don't have PSN+ subscription? Can you get premium cable TV if you don't have a subscription? Can you get internet service without a subscription to the ISP?

If you don't like the fee or the business model, don't use it. It's really simple, but for some reason we got legions of people in here complaining about the fee while about 15 million people renew their Xbox Live Gold subscription!!!

Biggest5263d ago

You're not sticking to the points being made. Above me you can see jack who saying that it's ESPN and ISP fault that people can't see ESPN on their 360. That isn't true.

But to address your "points":
I need to pay for internet access. I need to pay for premium cable. I pay for them. I can use my internet access and premium cable on my PC without any extra charges. I can use my internet access on my PS3 with no extra charges. I can use my internet access on my smartphone with no extra charges. I can use my internet access on my iPod Touch with no extra charges. I can use my internet access on my PSP with no extra charges. I do not like the Xbox Live business model. I do not use it. It's awesome that millions of people pay to use things they already paid for. It sucks that most of the pay because they have to pay if they want to play their online games online. It's funny that people defend it as if everyone paying for it makes it okay. It just makes it popular and stupid.

radphil5263d ago

@gamingdroid

Millions of people in the world smoke. Should we follow along to those that don't? :p

gamingdroid5263d ago (Edited 5263d ago )

I can use my PC and get free games, but I can't on PS3, Wii or Xbox 360.

My point being, I can point out free alternatives, but that doesn't change the fact that that is what MS offers. If you have an issue with it, don't use their platform.

"I can use my internet access on my smartphone with no extra charges. I can use my internet access on my iPod Touch with no extra charges. I can use my internet access on my PSP with no extra charges. I do not like the Xbox Live business model. I do not use it."

You can use your internet service free of charge on the Xbox 360. You can download demos, music, stream movies or whatever. You just can't access online play (or other services that MS makes available to you) that requires Xbox 360 servers to matchmake. It is a free service elsewhere and if that is a criteria you can and probably have gone there.

If you want ESPN3 access and it is free on your computer then go there! Why sit here and b!tch and moan in every Xbox 360 article to the people that are turning the deaf ear.

However, I suspect the next generation of console from the big three will require a subscription cost....

@radphil:

No, but I don't b!tch and moan about what others do. It's their choice, not mine to make for them!

That is a big problem with this world is everyone has an opinion, and they think everyone else should follow theirs!

By the way, I do have family members that smoke and died because of lung cancer. That was their choice. I don't blame the cigarette companies.

radphil5263d ago (Edited 5263d ago )

@gamingdroid

The thing is, while it's there choice, we should make it at least known to them that they don't HAVE to settle for it.

I at least managed to get one of my family members off from smoking. That doesn't mean it's guaranteed to work for everyone else, but at least the effort is there.

gamingdroid5262d ago

"The thing is, while it's there choice, we should make it at least known to them that they don't HAVE to settle for it."

Fair enough, I just don't need the same bunch of people telling me repeatedly on a site for hardcore gamers. I'm pretty sure the vast majority if not all knows there are alternatives.

Point is, we got it, but we still see value and don't mind paying. Although I technically do mind paying, but feel that I do get enough value to pay $30-35/annually.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 5262d ago
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240°

‘I think Xbox hardware is dead’, says Microsoft gaming veteran

One of the founding members of the Xbox team has questioned Microsoft’s multiplatform gaming strategy, and said they believe the Xbox hardware business is effectively “dead"

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videogameschronicle.com
1d 3h ago Replies(3)
Goodguy011d 1h ago

Think that rumor that they'll still make a new console but at a profit at $1000 will be true though. The series consoles will remain their cheap alternative throughout next gen I would say. Keep in mind that game pass and pretty much going 3rd party is their main focus. They want to bring xbox everywhere.

1d 1h ago
GamerRN4h ago

If they don't maintain some kind of console presence, I think they will lose gamepass subscribers and just become a 3rd party publisher who eventually sells everything off

Cacabunga3h ago

Xbox games are releasing on all platforms. Who needs this hardware? PS or PC is all you need

Flewid6382h ago

I've never owned an Xbox in my life and I have GamePass.

thorstein1h ago

The only Xbox I owned was the 360. I have gamepass for my PC.

crazyCoconuts3h ago

Even if they could get it down to $800 for a box that can run with comparable performance to a PS6 (at, say $200 cheaper) the population of people willing to buy such a thing would be so limited.
It would be the worst of both worlds.

23h ago
Futureshark14h ago

A slow, painful and public death too.

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300°

Looming Xbox layoffs threaten Microsoft's reputation

Even as the company sets out to overhaul the very definition of Xbox, cuts at its studios risk creating a negative image reminiscent of EA's worst era

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gamesindustry.biz
Jingsing3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

I appreciate the article but this guy must be living in a delayed universe, The reputation was ruined 10+ years ago and hasn't recovered since. As such people have voted with their wallets and stopped buying Xbox products in large amounts.

YourMommySpoils1d 23h ago

Their reputation was lost way before that. From the moment Microsoft said they entering the console business, we all knew it would be a downgrade.

Bathyj1d 9h ago (Edited 1d 9h ago )

That's not true at all the OG Xbox had drive and they had hunger and they wanted to accomplish something. It was a great console.

they didn't quite reach their goals and they gave up prematurely because they couldn't win. It was halfway through the Xbox 360 when kinect released and that was when they lost their way and we're a rudderless ship ever since

Agent751d 7h ago

In all fairness, Xbox had some great games with online play, Xbox 360 even better. Xbox consoles started to die with the Xbox One. Ditch consoles for the PC and PS.

YourMommySpoils23h ago

@Bathyj hard to compute ay. Xbox was never better than a PC and that's all they ever were. A demo box. Doesn't get more true than that.

3d ago Replies(1)
isarai3d ago

What reputation is this threatening exactly? 😂

Lightning773d ago

Rumors of Turn 10 being either shut down or hit with massive lay offs is on the horizon.

The issue is MS will do something right only to do something very, very wrong. And they do this what seems calculative at this point. Doesn't matter what they do the Investors and leadership want more and more money an endless bottomless pit of purr insatiable greed. A company that acts like it's broke or hurting is what really, really infuriates me. They've surpassed apple again well over 3 trillion who acts like they're a million dollar company is fk stupid. Pivots and changes for no reason and can't do things for more than a year with out a pivot or changing their metrics.

Christopher2d ago

That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest.

1Victor2d ago

@christopher: “ That would be really bad since Phil just hyped up next year as a big Forza year at Summer Game Fest”
The key word big can be ether good or bad 🤷🏿only time can tell

DarXyde2d ago

First Forza being generated entirely via AI?

If any company would do it, it'd be them.

Nacho_Z1d 15h ago

Isn't the point that it's irrelevant how profitable MS is, the suits have decided it's time that the Xbox division started making them money. Hence the layoffs, the pivots.

hennessey861d 10h ago

That wouldn't surprise me, as motorsport has been heading down hill since the great number 4. Where as playground have consistently put out better games. I think the two studios will be merged under playground games banner.

2d ago Replies(2)
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660°

Microsoft planning “major” Xbox layoffs next week

The cuts are expected to be announced next week.

Microsoft is also planning thousands of job cuts that will impact other parts of it businesses

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theverge.com
6d ago Replies(1)
6d ago Replies(1)
Obscure_Observer6d ago

MFs has been beating their chests over great quarterly results and big profits to shareholders while firing people by the thousands just like Sony.

I wonder if at the top of those rumored layoffs they´ll also cancel upcoming or unannounced games while shutting down more studios as well.

6d ago
pwnmaster30006d ago

Always got to throw shade at Sony smh.
Yes we get it,
MS good Sony bad
MS bad Sony is also bad lmao

6d ago
Obscure_Observer6d ago

F* them both!

Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares.

blacktiger6d ago

He was talking about both. Why you getting offended when he's using both names

pwnmaster30006d ago (Edited 6d ago )

@Blacktiger

Im not offended , that’s just his formula lol
He can’t help help himself, he needs to bring Sony down when the topic involves MS.
Whether is good news for MS or bad, it some how leads to Sony doing bad lmao.
It’s actually hilarious.

InUrFoxHole5d ago

He's not wrong but im tracking what youre saying. In this case is should just be MS bad. Thats a lot of people fired

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 5d ago
Tacoboto6d ago

"just like Sony"

Gosh you're insufferable, not everything needs to be both-sides'd. Sony's had layoffs, but nothing like what Microsoft has been doing and is continuing to do.

CrimsonWing696d ago (Edited 6d ago )

I mean, no offense, but this is why you’re not some corporate business person running a major corporation. Big profits don’t mean jobs are safe. Do you understand why things like this happen:

Cutting jobs to maintain or increase profitability, especially in underperforming divisions like parts of Xbox like other gaming divisions.

Corporate restructuring and relocating resources for strategic stability in ever changing markets and consumer behaviors.

Investor expectations and optimizing operations to maintain investor confidence. Whatever boosts stock prices and improves future margins.

And there’s many other factors at play. It’s never as simple as business doing well, everyone’s safe. That’s just you not understanding at all how corporations work and have been working since the beginning. This isn’t something that’s specific to Xbox, you can bet your ass Sony and Nintendo do this and if it’s not clear by now, game development is not a stable job nor has it ever been for many. A lot of developers are contractors and guess what happens when a project is done?

Ganif6d ago

Nintendo said they have no plans for layoffs, and you can't seriously claim that the scale of Sony's layoffs most of which involved Bungie which is self managed as even close to the same scale as what Microsoft has done since they purchased Zenimax. And that significantly less layoffs would have happened if those publishers had stayed independent. Keep in mind that much of these layoffs have been due to redundancies specifically related to these buyouts.

CrimsonWing696d ago (Edited 6d ago )

@Ganif

Nintendo:

https://gamerant.com/ninten...

Sony:

https://gamerant.com/playst...

https://techxplore.com/news...

I don’t think it’s realistic to treat Sony’s layoffs as somehow outside the norm for the industry right now. Even if Bungie is self-managed, Sony’s cuts went far beyond that like Naughty Dog, Insomniac, London Studio being shut down completely, and multiple teams across the globe took hits. These weren’t just minor adjustments.

Nintendo, I had to look up and you’re right. They seem to be an outlier, but rest assured at some point it happens. And even then there’s been layoffs, albeit a smaller amount and contractors.

Would fewer layoffs have happened if studios from acquisitions stayed independent? Maybe. But even independents have been hit hard and look at what’s happened with Embracer’s fallout, or smaller devs like Digic, Roll7, or Volition. This isn’t just a “Microsoft problem” or strictly tied to acquisitions; it’s a broader correction happening across the whole industry, and unfortunately, layoffs are a big part of that process right now.

Ganif6d ago

From your article:

"According to reports, Nintendo of America restructured its testing operations, leading to layoffs of about 120 contractors, part of a strategy for global integration.

Nintendo of America, publisher of iconic franchises like Mario and Zelda, is shifting some contractors to full-time roles for better development integration."

Contractors are not employees, and even if you want to count them as that, it's 120 people vs around 7500 since Microsoft purchased Zenimax.

In an era of game industry layoffs, Nintendo is hiring more people
https://automaton-media.com...

Nintendo Announces 10 Percent Pay Raise For Devs Despite Lower Profits
https://kotaku.com/nintendo...

Nintendo CEO’s refusal to layoff staff goes viral following industry-wide cuts
"Satoru Iwata took pay cuts to ensure staff didn’t have to be let go"
https://www.nme.com/news/ga...

And as for Sony you're comparing less than 1000 total jobs to an estimated7500

Has the industry faced layoffs, yes, but that still doesn't account for the mass layoffs due to redundancies that was easily predictable, or that fact that at least 1/3 of Microsoft's layoffs and studio closures happened before the industry downturn.

thorstein6d ago (Edited 6d ago )

Take the L, Crimson.

People hate Nintendo, but Ganif proved why they deserve support.

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-Foxtrot6d ago

It's like banging your head off a wall, he just can't help himself.

Microsoft can do no wrong, Sony sucks at everything and Nintendo is bigged up because it's less hassle than trying to defend Microsoft all the time

What's going to happen when Microsoft finally turn completely third party, then what?

anast6d ago

I enjoy Obscure. Obscure does good work.

crazyCoconuts6d ago

Did you know that the first n4g was designed to be a perfect human world? Where none suffered, where everyone would be happy. It was a disaster. No one would accept the program.

Tacoboto6d ago

I wouldn't be surprised at this point if anast and osbcure were both alts for the Admin.

We know how Obscure especially drums up additional comments and clicks with his spam-worthy remarks that somehow never get moderated

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Profchaos6d ago

Thats business present a strong front to your shareholders while your company burns around you.

Keep shareholders happy at all costs andnif not happy keep them numb to the reality of you organisation

Angyobangyo5d ago

" Just for the record, I don´t care about your victim complex crap either. Find someone else who cares. "

Just for the record, you clearly you do if you have to vent this hard.

TheExecutioner5d ago

Basically you think like kids when it come to choose between candy or chocolate.

Sonic18815d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Are you and Anast the same person?

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6d ago
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