240°

Kotaku: Analysis Alleges Microsoft Gimped Third-Party Video in the New Xbox Dashboard

Kotaku:

"Shortly after the new "Metro" dashboard for the Xbox 360 was released to the public, Eurogamer's Digital Foundry noticed that in-dash video was of a poorer quality than the same video played elsewhere. Investigating further—as Microsoft remained totally silent on the matter—it's discovered why: They say the software development kit given to third parties is limited to lower-quality video."

Godmars2904920d ago

This doesn't make any real sense. Why effectively gimp the quality of your own service? Just leaving the door wide open for someone else to support 3rd party VOD vendors which in turn will earn them the more active support of those vendors.

Overall you're just shooting yourself in the foot while trying to make your own service look better.

delosisland4920d ago

Why do people even care. Just go play the fucking games u like for gods sake. I clicked on this article ONLY because I saw a comment and I had to know what negative thing u had to say. Listen, use N4g for gaming news about games u like because everything comes here first. Let's not click these article types. Let's use that extra effort to go outside, exercise, study, watch sports, drink beer, etc. U feel sucked into this stupid drama of "will this system fail or which game sold more???" Who gives a fuck.

MariaHelFutura4920d ago

You sound like the one who needs to relax.

WrAiTh Sp3cTr34920d ago

It's really not hard to believe. Netflix is limited to 720p also on the 360, but Zune streaming is 1080p. I figured this would be because MS had planned on bringing their own monthly fee based Zune streaming service to compete with Netflix. I'm actually all for that, seeing as though Zune gets new releases way faster than than Netflix and I'm disappointed they haven't brought something like that out yet.

gamingdroid4920d ago (Edited 4920d ago )

MS has always been very friendly towards their partners, so this is likely just a bug or a new video encoder that doesn't have all it's features yet.

It doesn't make business sense to gimp 3rd party services, while that is one of your selling point now. Especially something so rarely noticeable to the general public.

That said, this is a duplicate and should be marked as such.

RememberThe3574920d ago

OK I'm confused. What exactly is going on here? Did MS gimp their own service or the likes of Netflix? Who the hell are the third parties that would be affected? And how the hell does this help fight off the smart tvs? I'm completely lost and feeling kind of stupid ATM.

Oldman1004920d ago (Edited 4920d ago )

Microsoft is essentially being anti-competitive by gimping third party video services (such as Netflix and Vudu) and users custom media files to 720p. Which leaves their 1080p first party video service as the highest quality service. Pretty shady if you ask me.

Oldman1004920d ago

Quotes from the Eurogamer article:

"the fact that Xbox 360 owners can no longer play back their 1080p videos at native resolution via the dashboard player is bit of a blow, and is clearly a real problem for a console that is looking to beef up its media credentials. The issue appears to impact the dashboard player and all of the "apps" you can download to stream video"

"Other services appear to be artificially limited in the new video marketplace apps. For example, streaming service Vudu offers 1080p24 movies via its "HDX" service but in its FAQ it mentions that "Xbox 360 is limited to HD only (720p)."

"Once again, the 720p limitation was reported during the dashboard preview programme and in common with the video levels issue we have reports that Microsoft deleted threads that referenced it."

"Ah yes, Zune. The service offers 1080p streaming downloads - something that is emphasised in the front-end of the 113MB downloadable app - and does indeed appear to resolve full resolution, so as Jeremy Anderson says it does appear to be the only outlet offering full HD movie streaming...something Microsoft is denying users with their own movie files, and seemingly its video partners too."

"Incorrect video levels are obviously a bug, but blatantly downgrading resolution looks very much like part of a strategy. As it is, the new dashboard's preview programme ensured that the issues were brought to Microsoft's attention. Now we wait to see whether anything will actually be fixed. "

"So, what's going on? The obvious conclusion is that the SDK Microsoft is believed to have supplied to third-party video partners is limited to 720p only, leaving Microsoft's host service with a clear quality advantage. The message we draw from this is that the platform holder wants to expand the take-up of the Xbox 360 as a media-streaming device, but very much on its own terms with its own content getting the best quality, and the user's "homebrew" media not being given much importance at all."

"They marked the threads we had on this as fixed shortly before closing the Connect bug report site for the preview programme, though the problem is hardly fixed," Jeremy Anderson says. "I'm hoping that this means a fix is on the way, but considering they deleted or marked as fixed all of the threads on this without comment, I'm not holding my breath. Seems low on the priority list for them."

"Microsoft has since acknowledged "the community's feedback" in a very short message on the website, suggesting somewhat obliquely that the points put forward will be taken under "consideration for future releases" - a somewhat half-hearted response bearing in mind that in some cases the quality of service is being significantly impacted by bugs and resolution downgrades."

"While the support for more media outlets on the Xbox 360 can only be a good thing, the apparent downgrade for homegrown video is a disappointment. In this respect the PS3 is more utilitarian, allowing for AVCHD content from HD camcorders to be burned to DVD and run with no issue on the console - something Xbox 360 could readily emulate but doesn't."

SweatyFlorida4920d ago (Edited 4920d ago )

Yah, this is all I got out of the article/headline:

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Bundi4920d ago ShowReplies(2)
Raider694919d ago (Edited 4919d ago )

Lame m$!The evidances are shown an they keep in denied and no comments on the subject!Just lame!

Show all comments (16)
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

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
2d ago Replies(1)
2d ago Replies(1)
Obscure_Observer2d 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.

2d ago
pwnmaster30002d ago

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

2d ago
Obscure_Observer2d ago

F* them both!

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

blacktiger2d ago

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

pwnmaster30002d ago (Edited 2d 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.

InUrFoxHole2d 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 2d ago
Tacoboto2d 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.

CrimsonWing692d ago (Edited 2d 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?

Ganif2d 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.

CrimsonWing692d ago (Edited 2d 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.

Ganif2d 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.

thorstein2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Take the L, Crimson.

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

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 2d ago
-Foxtrot2d 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?

anast2d ago

I enjoy Obscure. Obscure does good work.

crazyCoconuts2d 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.

Tacoboto2d 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

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 2d ago
Profchaos2d 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

Angyobangyo2d 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.

TheExecutioner2d ago

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

Sonic18812d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Are you and Anast the same person?

+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 2d ago
2d ago
Show all comments (86)
260°

AMD CEO Shares Vision Behind Xbox Partnership and Next-Gen Chip Roadmap

AMD CEO Lisa Su talks about the Xbox AMD partnership, next-gen Ryzen + Radeon chips, and AI rendering tech coming to all Xbox devices.

Read Full Story >>
clouddosage.com
Obscure_Observer7d ago

AMD is really building hype around their unique partnership with Microsoft to help and build an advanced and seamless Xbox ecosystem across all Xbox consoles and devices.

I wonder what she meant by "full roadmap of gaming optimized chips" though? Seems ambitious.

Next year´s Xbox Showcase already looks promising and exciting. Here´s hoping they deliver.

InUrFoxHole7d ago

They had best show 3yrs in a row. Heading for another

VenomUK7d ago

Obscure_Observer said “I wonder what she meant by "full roadmap of gaming optimised chips" though? Seems ambitious.” To me, I interpret this to mean rather than having a couple of X/S products for launch and a handheld there is a longer term plan to release new products with higher specs at timed intervals. I’m speculating of course, but this could mean a spec bump every year or two, so that even if the PS6 or Steam Deck Home is released a year after ‘Xbox’ Microsoft can release an updated model that has a higher spec.

Agent756d ago

But Microsoft forgot the games.

KwietStorm_BLM7d ago

It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever.

Ganif6d ago

Correct.

"Sony's PlayStation 6 reportedly will feature an AMD semi-custom APU with a Zen 5 CPU and UDNA GPU, capable of 4K 120FPS and 8K 60FPS gaming. The console will include X3D cache and advanced AI upscaling technology."

https://www.tweaktown.com/n...

Obscure_Observer6d ago

"It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever."

I doubt that AMD´s CEO would waste her time making this huge and important partnership announcement over a tech that will be 7 years old by the those next gen consoles will be released.

Notellin6d ago

You should have just lead this comment with the fact that you have zero understanding of technology in the consoles and instead have a Toms Hardware online forum level of education.

Obscure_Observer3d ago

"It's X3D chips for console. Everyone knows this. And it's been rumored in the PS6 forever"

I´d told you were on some bs

https://www.pcgamesn.com/wp...

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3d ago
Agent756d ago

But Microsoft forgot the games

Obscure_Observer6d ago

@VenomUK

"I’m speculating of course, but this could mean a spec bump every year or two, so that even if the PS6 or Steam Deck Home is released a year after ‘Xbox’ Microsoft can release an updated model that has a higher spec."

Very interesting theory. Still not sure how MS would actually make it work.

KwietStorm_BLM6d ago

"I doubt that AMD´s CEO would waste her time making this huge and important partnership announcement over a tech that will be 7 years old by the those next gen consoles will be released."

How old is the tech in consoles? It's not a huge announcement. It's marketing and you know it is.

Obscure_Observer5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

"How old is the tech in consoles? It's not a huge announcement. It's marketing and you know it is."

Dude, what I know for certain is that a tech as old as X3D chips which is actually *older* than both PS5 and Xbox Series consoles, is hardly the reason behind this new partnership between AMD and MS to build new *custom silicon* for next generation of consoles.

And yes it´s a huge announcement since AMD is working closely with MS to co-develop custom SoC which will allow backwards compatibility across all MS´s next gen devices allowing seamless integration between devices and full backwards compatibility across all generations of Xbox consoles.

I also know is that this announcement don´t have anything to do with Playstation and their strategy with AMD for the PS6, so stop comparing the two pretending that you know what´s going on, because you clearly don´t.

If Sony is working on something remotely similar, that´s remain to be seen.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 3d ago
Fishy Fingers7d ago (Edited 7d ago )

Some odd, deliberate wording, no branding, not 'Xbox consoles, Xbox handhelds' specifically, feels and sounds like they're building towards hardware that anyone can be used or licensed to/by themselves and other manufacturers.

Multiplatform software and hardware 'Xbox/AMD APU'.

Obscure_Observer7d ago

I guess you missed Sarah Bond´s next generation Xbox announcement this week, were she clearly states:

"I´m thrilled to share that we´ve established a strategic multi-year partnership with AMD to co-engineer silicon across a portfolio of devices, including, *our* next generation *Xbox consoles*."

But hey, I don´t think you´re entirely wrong, maybe MS will build their own Xbox consoles while licencing other manufactures to build and sell their own Xbox branded consoles. Who knows

BeHunted7d ago (Edited 7d ago )

I think you watched the wrong video. It's below the description, or you can watch it directly on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/kprpRvsOua...

HyperMoused7d ago

Shares vision....we provide chips for money, this deal will sell many chips, we will make lots of money...good vision

Christopher7d ago

The marketing behind this is so heavy that I worry about the actual outcome. Why are they just not showing us the product, why all this talking in market speak?

Lightning777d ago

Probably because the next xbox isn't ready to release yet?

The marketing and rumors seem to be heavy out of no where. The rumor was a 27 release but it maybe it could be 26 new console launch instead.

Who knows.

Eonjay7d ago

There PR is alrways super heavy handed. No one is acutally buying an Xbox as is.
Also it is very early to be talking so much about a next gen console.

Obscure_Observer6d ago

There´s a lot of people interested on Xbox Next and its ability to run games from major stores like Steam.

We know that the PS6 is just around the corner as well, but so far, no news on what it might improve over the PS5 or PS5 Pro.

However, Sony already made public that their priority and actual focus is the PS6. So its not "very early" to talk about next gen when the very console manufactures are talking about it.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 6d ago
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210°

Activision Forces Adverts into Call of Duty Black Ops 6 and Warzone Loadouts

With the launch of Call of Duty Season 4, Activision quietly put adverts inside loadouts for Black Ops 6 and Warzone, sparking a backlash in the process.

26d ago
26d ago
lukasmain26d ago

Putting Ads in a pay-to-play Premium title? Well done Microsoft. Well done /s This is really scummy.

jjb198125d ago

This game will never change because these sweatlords love buying up all the skins and bundles that become obsolete the following year. They're the ones perpetuating Activision's greed.

VenomUK25d ago

If Microsoft introduces adverts into its other games I hope it can do them without disrupting the immersion of the game world. So for example in the new Fable game it would look out of place if there was a billboard advertising Cadillacs.

A far better way to do it would be to have a wizard conjure a 'dream cloud' in front of your character and then in the cloud you can see the Cadillac car and see the text with price and availability and hear a booming sales voice promoting the car. That would work so well as it wouldn't be a billboard and completely, 100%, fit in with your character's adventuring in Albion. Doesn't that sound so much better?!

crazyCoconuts25d ago

@venom, or how about our of 100 farts in Albion, 1 of them has a Cadillac pop out

VenomUK25d ago

@crazyCoconuts That’s undeniably off-beat - but it could really work!

25d ago
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