Microsoft licensing the 360 - good idea or horrible idea?

[QUOTE="wemhim"][QUOTE="dream431ca"]

[QUOTE="cliff122316"]this will effectively make consoles into PC's. whats the difference at this point? you start with a base package and add on whatever the manufacturer wants. i think this will ruin console gaming, but perphaps this was MS plan all along. maybe they didnt care how much money they lost to establish an install base, they knew if they licensed out their console when no one else did they would win. how can sony and the wii compete if this happens? all consoles will become the same thing, PC's.cliff122316

The true console monopoly....do any of you actually want this to happen?

i dont think this would mean all the sytems integrated. thats the last thing that will happen when one of them fails and sells out. think about what the console would then be. you would have an OS that allows it to play 360 games. then microsoft would license out all the hardware manufacturing (since they obviously arent too good at it) to 3rd parties. the third parties would have to use the OS to run the games but they would be free to put in any extra hardware they want (which would lead to better multimedia, sort of like ummmm i dont know...a pc?). hello compatability issues! you now have a pc that you hook up to your tv.

That is completely doable. DVD movie is software capable of playing in any DVD compatuble hardware, so is MP3, jpg pictures, Flash animations, java cellphone games, etc...

Having a standard unified gamming platform that would allow developers to reach the entire market developing a game just once is the best scenario for everyone, expect those that hold current monopolies, Sony, MS and Nintendo. On the other hald, The big 3 should be more than capable of making money just selling 1st party software alone(that would be compatible with all platforms) instead of charging for licensing.

There wouldn't be any compatibily issues because the standard is the minumm required for the games to run. If manufacturer X wants to include a 2x faster processor, 4x more memory and a BMW they can, the games would still be playable. They would have t provide drivers so their parafernalia is properly used by the platform OS(what actually plays the games).

[QUOTE="Ninja-Vox"]

This is still a rumour of course, but according to the story gamespot is running, people seem to be speculating that microsoft plan to announce at CES that the 360 will be licensed to other companies. While they deny that they're releasing a 360 with built-in HD-DVD drive, licensing the 360 to other companies would pretty much guarantee Toshiba bringing out an HD-DVD 360 as soon as they possibly can.

So; licensing? Makes the console much cheaper to produce and sell, very bad news for Sony as their biggest rivals step into the gaming market which they've managed to keep them out of until now. Downsides? Well... can we expect consoles to basically become PCs with reiterations releasing every year if more than one company is making them?

Thoughts?

Pro_wrestler

I'm not sure. I don't remember this ever taking place with previous gaming hardware developers. Looking at the unchanging side of things, this doesn't affect current 360 owners in any way; This could pose as an oppertunity for MSFT tap into the hardcore electronics enthusiast, bringing in potentially new gamers.

Given Toshibas track record of reliable electronics, maybe this could be the end of the TRL while taking pressure off of MSFT's shoulders.

This seems likely with New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. going Blu-ray exclusive, this seems like it could be a big counter on Toshibas part.

Now that I think about it, I can't seem any harm done. At best, console gaming would become even more like PC gaming in a sense that, these X360's are able to play games but that may not be sole reason your buying into it. At worse, they won't sell any and the idea will flop but 'regular' 360 sales will go unaffected. For MSFT, it seems like a win/win.

Didn't read thread (other than the OP's post)

If true than this is actually bad news...we all know how 3rd party accessories blow...and this would make the 360 SKU"s very confusing...gah...wtf are u doing MS? seriously

[QUOTE="Mystery_Writer"]good thing. it's like how they dominated the pc market. selling OSs :)_Pedro_

I really don't see this being a "good thing".

the short answer: 3dfx vs. nVidia..... Apple Mac OS vs. DOS & Windows.

the long answer: (i'm gonna type really quick, so excuse my grammer / lack of comprehensive explanation).

3dfx example:

3dfx, out of greed, wanted to manufacture their graphics boards exclusively (not just the chip like what they used to do before) without selling & licensing any of their chips to 3rd party board manufacturers (like creative, orchid, diamond, leadtek, gigabyte, etc...)

they lost a big share of the market to nVidia due to the support, advertisement, & promotions of all of those 3rd parties collectively when they shifted their focus towards nVidia products. (+ less support headache to nVidia)

apple example:

Apple, out of greed, wanted to corner the PC market by not allowing 3rd party manufacturers to release apple compatible computers & accessories.

the collective efforts, like the case in 3dfx example (manufacturing, advertising, promotion, etc...), of 3rd party computers & accessories manufacturers shifted their attention by solely focusing on supporting DOS & Windows platforms instead of apple mac os.

X360 example:

Dell X360, Creative X360, Toshiba X360, etc... all competing collectively to attract consumers towards one platform... the X360 platform. (+ less support headache to MS, and more money from IP licenses & OS).

hope that somewhat gets the picture clearer :)

[QUOTE="Heil68"]I wouldn't think they would as their own hardware sales would decline, that coupled with the amount of SKU'S it would lead to. I guess it would depend on how much money they would make on them, compared to their own ultimately.Ninja-Vox

They'd probably make more money through licensing to be honest. The video games business is all about getting as many consoles out there as possible to maximise the profit you take in on videogames; this way they wouldn't have to take a loss to get their consoles out their. Other companies would do it for them, and they'd even make money off the licensing.

I doubt the other parties would sell their consoles at a loss.

[QUOTE="Ninja-Vox"]

[QUOTE="Heil68"]I wouldn't think they would as their own hardware sales would decline, that coupled with the amount of SKU'S it would lead to. I guess it would depend on how much money they would make on them, compared to their own ultimately.Nikalai_88

They'd probably make more money through licensing to be honest. The video games business is all about getting as many consoles out there as possible to maximise the profit you take in on videogames; this way they wouldn't have to take a loss to get their consoles out their. Other companies would do it for them, and they'd even make money off the licensing.

I doubt the other parties would sell their consoles at a loss.

No they wouldn't. Microsoft buys all the parts from companies like Toshiba anyway; Toshiba wouldn't have to do that. They would literally just make it themselves and would easily be able to sell it for a profit.

TC,

that's such an interesting find. And BTW, Microsoft did something similiar in the past (in the 80's) with a gaming home computer platform called MSX (they provided the OS).

MSX was very popular in Japan and Asia, and was the platform on which Hideo Kojima released his first Metal Gear Solid game (became an instant hit on the MSX platform / 2D graphics).

MSX used to get manufactured by many companies (Yamaha, Sony, etc...), but they shared one graphics + cpu. (Z80 CPU, & I don't remember the graphics chip).

That would be frigging sick for Microsoft... usually producing the consoles themselves results in a loss of money, but if Microsoft's not even the company selling the consoles then they can rake in extra dough off of the games.Funkyhamster

It seems a little fishy to me. If they are licensing it what is topping Nintendo, Sega, or even Sony from being it and integrating it with their own stuff making some wied hybrid that plays everything meaning ... nah that's too crazy.

Perhaps like others have said 360 laptops with Vista and blah blah. I personally don't care either way. But that whole rumor seems very fishy I think that at CES there might be a big price drop with an ultimate model shown "aka Iphone style"

I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing.dream431ca

me neither .. we'll just have to wait and see, that's if this actually happens

This is still a rumour of course, but according to the story gamespot is running, people seem to be speculating that microsoft plan to announce at CES that the 360 will be licensed to other companies. While they deny that they're releasing a 360 with built-in HD-DVD drive, licensing the 360 to other companies would pretty much guarantee Toshiba bringing out an HD-DVD 360 as soon as they possibly can.

So; licensing? Makes the console much cheaper to produce and sell, very bad news for Sony as their biggest rivals step into the gaming market which they've managed to keep them out of until now. Downsides? Well... can we expect consoles to basically become PCs with reiterations releasing every year if more than one company is making them?

Thoughts?

Ninja-Vox

well in this case no...Ms wouldn't own the xbox brand anymore then....techincally they would...they wouldn't do that, they would Just HIRE them as manufactors as they do with other companies in tiawan and china and other countries. http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=26144542&msg_id=297198740#297198740

[QUOTE="Ninja-Vox"][QUOTE="-Spock-"]

If it gives me an alternative to Microsoft's shoddily-built hardware, i'm all for it. However, would the three-year warrenty still apply, or would I get a new warranty from the manufacturer?

-Spock-

It'd be the manufacturer. Just like companies which make licensed controllers for consoles; the companies which made the consoles in the first place have nothing to do with it once it's produced. Though sony microsoft and nintendo all have fairly strict quality-assurance tests to make sure nothing crappy is released for their machines.

I know i'm probably being a greedy bastard when I say this, but I really did want reliable hardware and the three-year RROD warranty. I'm in the market to buy a 360 this year, but I just don't know exactly what i'm going to be doing. Do I go for an Elite soon? Do I wait for the rumored "Ultimate"? Do I wait for a third-party variation which is more reliable (which would mean more waiting after release to see the results)? Do I wait for the smaller 45nm processors? I really do want the games, but the constant SKU variations and continued progress of the hardware is making it difficult to decide.

Sony will get the license and will put the 360 into the PS3, thus creating a PS360 hybrid giving you the ability to play all the 360 exclusives and PS3 exclusives all on one system! MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Nintendo will get the license and will put the 360 into the Wii, thus creating a Wii60 hybrid giving you the ability to play all the 360 exclusives and Wii exclusives on one system, PLUS giving Wii games the power of the 360! Gears of War with Wii controls! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Just an idea...

But actually, I dunno what I will do about buying a 360 if this would happen. If there are multiple types being released from different manufacturers plus the SKUs released by Microsoft themselves, I don't know what I will do. I want a 360 but...ya know...we'll see what happens I guess

Whatever is good for my 360, let it be done

To put it simply, as long as i can play ALL games, that even core can so far, i have no problem if they attach a spacesip on a new version

But frankly, this rumorseems like BS

saolin323

Bs indeed

This does sound farfetched though, seeing as the Xbox sold would have to meet the minimum spec for the games.

So it would just say something like Hitachi Xbox. Instead of Microsoft.

The only differences each one would have, might be some different features. However the core componenets like the MB,GPU, CPU, RAM and such would all have to be the same as the main xbox for games to be compatible.