My first Microsoft console was the Xbox 360 and I gotta admit, I like it a lot.  After spending the better part of the 7th gen on this forum, I realize that a lot of people blame Microsoft for things that are wrong with the industry.  Things that, quite frankly, weren't their fault.  Read on:

Myth:  Microsoft was the one that started making us pay for online gaming

-This is false.  Anybody who was around at the time knows that SegaNet (Dreamcast) charged for an online gaming subscription long before Xbox Live.  In fact, if I remember, SegaNet cost around $19 a month.  Even before them, there were paid (unlicensed) online services for Super Nes/Genesis games.

Myth:  Microsoft made it okay to launch a console with faulty hardware

-Again, not true.  The original Xbox was built like a tank.  The Xbox 360 may have the worst failure rate of all time but the PS2 also suffered so many defects that Sony was the subject of a class action lawsuit.  Sony settled.  Even before that, it was widely accepted that the PS1 was a fragile device.  Quick fixes were common, including turning the console on its side or even upside down.

Myth:  Microsoft ruined the industry with their exclusivity deals

-Before the Xbox 360, it was actually Nintendo with the NES and Super NES that wouldn't allow companies to make games for the competiton.  Companies found ways around this by releasing their games under different names.  For example, Street Fighter 2 Turbo was exclusive to the Super Nes so Capcom would release "Street Fighter 2: Special Champion Edition" for the Genesis.  Virtually the same game but a way around the exclusivity deal.  And it wasn't just Nintendo.  In a 2001 issue of EGM, Microsoft was preparing for the launch of the Xbox and was quoted saying that certain games were "Moneyhatted" to remain exclusive to the PS2 but they were able to get most of whay they wanted.

It would seem that Microsoft "throwing money" at gaming companies for exclusive content was a standard practice long before the Xbox was a threat.

There were more examples but I can't think of them right now.  I'm at work.  I'll try to remember them later.  My point is, instead of hating Microsoft for ruining the industry, why not thank them for what they brought to the table?  Competition with Sony made Sony a better company.  Their focus on online (especially when Broadband was in its infancy) brought about many revolutions.  Acheivements gave people many incentives to replay and explore their games.  They were the first console to offer Netflix and many other apps.  They were the first console maker to pack a built in hard drive when others were using memory cards.  

Instead of hating on them, why not say "Thank you, Microsoft.  Thank you for all that you've done."?  

I'm d21lewis.

Did they paid you to write this?

Certainly, they offered him a ps4 i guess.

yup completely innocent. They were in Chicago, chipping golf balls

Yea but Sega died in the hardware business but Microsoft made paying for online popular so....

Nice facts.

But I think what I think duh.:P

Mostly pretty true. Early Xboxs did have some pretty nasty failure rates for stupid people that didn't plug their console into a power bar though. Surges fried the PSU pretty easily. Microsoft would send them back with a new PSU and a new power cord with a surge protector built in.

And don't forget Sega Channel. A monthly subscription to get games on demand to your Genesis through your cable provider.

My beef with Microsoft is mostly due to how many times Windows has let me down. I have a crystal Xbox, but I've hardly used it. I'll probably get a 360 when they're $129. Same goes for the Xbone.

I don't blame Microsoft for anything.

They're just my least favorite of the big 3.

I'd rather have Sega back honestly...

Myth:  Microsoft was the one that started making us pay for online gaming

Dreamarena was free.

Myth:  Microsoft made it okay to launch a console with faulty hardware

"Also suffered" is grossly missleading. Neither the PS1's nor PS2's fail rates were ever comparable.

Myth:  Microsoft ruined the industry with their exclusivity deals

Again missleading. MS "ruined" or better hindered part of the industry by making games exclusive that were quite simply not selling on the platform. Outside of well known Japanese titles, I think exclusivity also proved out to be a mistake for Alan Wake as well.

Of course MS didn't start any of these things, they just popularize the current form of a few (not necessarily a bad thing, depends who you ask :p).

On a side note (since you brought up failure rates), both Sony/MS have done a good job with making the PS4/X1 stable. They did of course play it safe with the hardware, and the X1 + power brick seem almost comically big compared to the PS4/WiiU, but all in all they've done a good job.