Anyone believe or hope Microsoft will leave the videogame business?

[lestatdark]

WilliamWatts said:

The thing is with Sony and Microsoft is that being 2nd/3rd their positions aren't ensured and there is a very real possibility that the success of one will drive the other out of the market. When it comes to core market adoption and especially online the market itself dictates that one console encompass that entire market as competing standards for communications have done in the past. Since PSN and Xbox Live are not inter-operatable any great momentum for one can easily seal the fate of the other.

There aren't many players outside the console market which would have the balls and resources to foot a competing console. The only ones which come to mind are Apple. However as interlopers into an extremely competitive market they would have to take share from either Nintendo or Sony/Microsofts segments of the market and neither are easy tasks for a new-comer to do.

I wouldn't count anyone out for the next generation at this point, the only thing which is *almost* certain is that Nintendo will have a strong place in the market and a fuller slice of all the market segments they failed to capture this time around. If their going with a powerful Nvidia chipset for the next handheld is any indication it won't be a slouch in terms of overall performance.

I agree with your statements, yet I really hope that Sony and Microsoft don't end up in a struggle to see which one leaves the market first, things will get pretty nasty, and the consumers from both companies are the ones who will take the hit in the end.

Plus, it's fair to say that at this point in the generation, there's nothing that can pretty much counter the momentum that Nintendo gained with both the Wii and the DS, not only in terms of sales, but the huge boost in brand recognition that they have had, which puts them in a magnificent position for the start of the next generation.