binary solo said:
Kelzus said:
Weren't they basically forced to do this though? If I remember correctly weren't the government or some standards agency getting involved because Microsoft kept downplaying how bad the problem actually was? |
I dunno about any agency, but yes, they were forced into it at least by realising the enormity of the problem and that it meant the death of the Xbox brand if they didn't do the right thing. But Peter Moore isn't going to admit their first reaction was denial, do nothing and hope it goes away. Esp since apparently the engineering people had no clue why the problem was happening. If they say "we don't see any faults, so it hopefully is just a random thing" then the bosses will base their decvisions on that advice.
Still, this company, like all others, do not act out of the consumer's interest, they act out of self preservation.
Decision tree:
Will profits be substantially negatively affected by this? Yes - take action, No-go to next question.
Will an important brand or company image be significantly negatively affected by this? Yes - go to next question; No - fuck 'em
How much will it cost? It won't affect other parts of the business or the share price - take action; too much - go to next question
Is the cost of a class action more or less than the cost of fixing the problem? Class action cost is more - take action; Class action cost is less - go to next question.
Will lives be lost or will there be serious injury? Yes/Probably - go to next question; No - fuck 'em
Can the loss of life/injury be buried or hidden or blamed on something else (especially blame the consumer or make them look like they are clueless idiots)? Yes - fuck 'em; No - I guess we better do something.
At the press conference: "Our customers are our number one concern."
Public and media: "Yay! they are so great for doing the right thing! We love you Mr/Mrs/Ms soulless corporation!... Hey, did you watch [insert inane reality TV show] last night?"
Steve Balmer got through the first 3 or 4 questions and immediately decided the cost was within acceptable limits. If he'd decided the cost was too much, he would have let the brand die, told Xbox customers to fuck off, and buried Xbox along with Zune. And that would have been the right decision for the company. MS would never have saved Xbox at any cost, so it is fortunate that the cost was low enough that it was worth doing the right thing by customers.
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