A couple of things here. I don't think Microsoft "has to" acquire the close third party partners like Valve and Epic. These developers are essentially producing exclusives (please do not start arguments about what's an exclusive) for them out of their own volition. The only advantage for them acquiring them would be to probably kill the PC version of whatever Valve does, but I just don't see any real advantage in them buying either one of those two at the moment. If the Wingnut studio would announce their freaking game already, then their first party lineup would stack up better with the other two companies.
Also, Microsoft makes way too much money off of Xbox Live to the point where I never see them making it free.
themanwithnoname's law: As an America's sales or NPD thread grows longer, the probabilty of the comment "America = World" [sarcasticly] being made approaches 1.
