Power On: The Story of Xbox

[mjk45]

Azzanation said:

EricHiggin said:

That's not what the documentary says.

If that were the case, going after SNY would have been a no brainer for MS. It wasn't until Windows in general may be under threat, which was simply a future thought experiment, that MS took it more seriously. Even then they weren't entirely sold on it.

Which makes sense because once SNY steps on your turf, what are the odds they'll only remain in this fraction of it?

I haven't seen the documentary, however it wasn't just Sony that pushed MS into the Console market. They were in it way before Sony and even Sega. They were pushed out by the ever popular Commadore 64 which dominated the market at the time. MS always wanted to stay in the market and the moment Sega dropped out, they saw their prime opportunity. Sega was helping drive MS software and without Sega, no one was doing it in the console industry. The Xbox was created in house so they don't have to rely on outsourcing their software. This explains why MS wanted to buy Nintendo etc. The Xbox named after Direct X was Microsoft's return to the industry.

Yes they supplied software, but from a hardware standpoint it was Bills fear of the one machine to rule them an all in every home that opened the door but those at MS at the time advocating for MS owned hardware Xbox, not to dissimilar to those early advocates at Sony would have helped it gain impetus.

We need to remember this was a scenario that held sway among many in the tech industry at that time where smart devices were still a fair way from being realised.

Last edited by mjk45 - on 18 December 2021