https://www.destructoid.com/microsoft-is-bundling-xbox-one-consoles-with-live-gold-in-new-subsidized-plans-519647.phtml

So basically you pay an upfront fee for the console and then continue to pay a monthly fee of $22 to $34 dollars for two years.

IMO this is just MS trying to move their "Games as a Service" plans forward. They want to turn playing video games into a monthly bill like your phone bill, or internet bill. That way they have a guaranteed stream of income from their "customers". About five years ago Adobe scrapped the ability to purchase Photoshop outright, and moved on to making people pay a monthly fee indefinitely. Over the long term customers are made to pay more money than if they were to just buy a copy of Photoshop outright. Autodesk did the same thing with 3DS Max. Anyway, I feel like in five or six years the Xbox brand will go the same direction. No more ability to just outright buy games, and a console from a store. You'll be locked into a service plan that is ultimately more expensive in the long run, than if you flat out bought the system and games separately. 

Why are companies so afraid of selling products instead of services now? This is only going to inflate the bubble faster, noone will be able to pay for their products indefinitively if everyone else is asking for monthly fees too.

Haven't they done something like this already?

He's missing the upfront fee. For the deal with the S the upfront fee is $230. For the X the upfront fee is either $230 or more. 

So you can buy the S for around $300, and then pay $60 a year for XBL, and Gamepass for $10 a month, for a total of $660 for two years. 

Or....

You can pay $230 upfront and the $22 a year for two years, for a total of $758. 

Clearly just outright buying the console is better. It's especially true when you consider that XBL usually runs deals to get it for cheaper than $60 a year, and that not everybody needs 24/7/365 XBL coverage to enjoy all their games. Many games are strictly single player experiences. So what happens if you wind up playing single player for three or four months a year? You're still paying for the XBL that you dont' need for all those months. 

I remember renting consoles from blockbuster,this is nearly the same thing. I can't see this working out.

They did this with 360 late in its life.

Ah ok, then it's a good deal, but only if you're one of those people that plans on having XBL + Gamepass 24/7/365. It wouldn't work for me, because I have no need for Gamepass, and I might have XBL four or five months out of the year (if I even had an XB1 system). But for someone like my old roommate who plays a ton of multiplayer games, and also has Gamepass it's a good deal. 

Not a bad deal actually. It's certainly more expensive over the course of a generation but cheaper than most people pay for their phones. I'd still rather buy it outright but it's a good option for those who don't want to.

I would like more details. If the xbox breaks, do they pay for it and just give you a new one? Wondering if this would be cheaper than buying a base Xbox or ps4 at launch then upgrading to a pro or X mid way... It might work out cheaper.... If there is no deposit.

Gross.

Yeah, having more options for people is gross.