Well, the first point makes sense, although they probably could have worked out a deal to cover the shortfall if it really was a money-loser for MS.
The second point doesn't make much sense. Did the army need those 360s tomorrow or forget it? Give MS a few months and I'm sure the order could be filled.
The last point, I dunno. It seems like any PR cost would be offset by the status of being the Official Console of the US Army, so to speak. Plenty of soldiers might come back from duty and pick up a 360 instead of a competing product, and it feeds into the machismo that so many Xbox games try to cultivate. I guess PR decisions like this are a dodgy weighing of risks and MS decided that the potential costs outweighed the potential benefits.
"The worst part about these reviews is they are [subjective]--and their scores often depend on how drunk you got the media at a Street Fighter event." — Mona Hamilton, Capcom Senior VP of Marketing
*Image indefinitely borrowed from BrainBoxLtd without his consent.
