Dr.Henry_Killinger said:
The context doesn't matter. To say they are distancing it from the core, rather then saying they are focusing on thier core and simply omitting the mention of Xbox, he's harming the brand. As a gamer, this is anything but comforting. As an investor, it only furthers the case to drop it. As far as games are concerned, Xbox out prioritizes Microsoft. It's funny many of those who claim PlayStation would be fine without Sony (not saying it was you but instead making a general claim), are now defending Microsoft at the cost of Xbox. So much for consistency. |
Anytime anyone tells me context doesn't matter I have to raise an eyebrow. Its a clear sign that you are selectively taken what you want to hear and dismissing the rest.
@BOLDED: Not buying it. A business unit does not have to be a core function of a corporation to get support. The Xbox division will never be a core division of MS because they are not a consumer hardware company. Consoles do not sell on the same level as mobile phones, Office, OS or their cloud platform. Consoles does not sell on the same level as their server software or development software either. Are you telling me you rather have the CEO blow sunshine up your butt or tell it plain and simple. "Xbox not core but its still integral to our business". Thats basically what he said. The Xbox division connects a lot of stuff they are trying to do and it also have benefits within their core units.
@2ndBolded: I am 100% sure you would never find such statements from me even during all the doom and gloom during the PS3 era. This is how I look at the Xbox division in MS business stragety. It allow them to sell just about all their services to consumers. From music, TV and Movies purchase as well as rentals, games either retail or indie. Its a platform for development which means you sell your tools like Visual Studio. Its a place to leverage your cloud platform Azure. Giving developers and publishers access to free dedicated servers is a way for them to get those same people to use Azure for their business.
When it all comes down to it, people are getting silly over the term core business unit as if that means MS will suddenly drop the Xbox. Was Skype, Visual Studio, SQL Server etc considered as core. All of these units work together within a large corporation like MS but they do not have to be core business units to get funding and support. There are certain areas you need to lead and others you need to innovate and others you need to have a present in.








