Per the WSJ article:
The introduction of Microsoft Corp.MSFT +1.18%’s next-generation game console has not gone smoothly.
Initially, the company upset some users by introducing new rules restricting the sale and trade of game disks, while requiring the new machine to connect to the Internet every day. Even though it reversed those policies,the perception that Microsoft had stumbled became a theme that echoed across the Internet months before the launch.
A Xbox One console is pictured at the Microsoft Games exhibition stand during the Gamescom 2013 fair in Cologne August 23, 2013.ReutersAnd then, Don Mattrick, the Microsoft executive running the Xbox business, left the company to become Zynga’s CEO.
Sony helped its own cause by announcing that the PS4 would start selling at $399 when it becomes available on Nov. 15. That’s $100 less than Microsoft’s $499 price for the Xbox One, which launches on Nov. 22. Sony has said it has received more than one million pre-orders globally for the machine.
Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft Studios and the person responsible for content on the Xbox One, said the company is in good shape with the Xbox One, which is now coming off the production lines. While he wouldn’t specify a pre-order number for the Xbox One, Mr. Spencer said it could come up with a total that’s “one more” if it wanted to get into the numbers game with Sony.
He spoke with the Wall Street Journal ahead of the Tokyo Game Show about how this holiday season was shaping up. Edited excerpts follow:
WSJ: There’s a perception that Microsoft stumbled a little with the introduction of the Xbox One. Do you feel like you’ve been able to recover from that?
Spencer: If you look at the metrics that matter for the business like pre-orders, buzz around the launch portfolio and the content, we feel incredibly good. Our pre-order numbers are bigger than they were for the original Xbox, bigger than they were for the 360, and, frankly at this point, we’re managing our pre-order number to make sure that we have availability in stores on day one.
Now you want to turn pre-orders into actual sales. I actually think this generation – and the fact that it’s head-to-head competition this holiday – is probably going to play out more next holiday and beyond. We’ve been fortunate enough to have built a franchise around Xbox that has millions of fans worldwide. This holiday, I think you have a lot of people lining up, because they’re fans of the franchises and the platform, but over a two- or three-year period, you start to get some of those swing consumers making decisions. I would take a longer term view.
WSJ: And Halo is coming next year, right?
Spencer: Yes, the journey begins in 2014. I like to say it’s the reason why I still have a job, because, in many ways, the original Halo justified the original Xbox as a gaming platform. It became the breakout hit. It was foundational in creating Xbox Live when Halo 2 came out. I’m really excited to see what 343 does with Halo on Xbox One. I think that’s going to be great. Coming out of Halo 4, the fastest selling videogame of all-time, 343 Industries team has done a great job with the first one and I think they’ll do a nice job with the next one.
WSJ: Why not make it available at launch?
Spencer: Halo is our most important entertainment franchise at the company. It’s a $3 billion franchise if you look at all the products that have been sold for Halo. As a standalone business, as a standalone entity, it’s a really important franchise. You want to make sure you have the right product in market. There’s the axiom that a game is only late once, but it’s bad forever.
You want to make sure when that game comes out that it’s true to the heritage of what Halo is. Halo’s been a strong franchise for us for over a decade and I want to keep it that way. We’ve got 23 launch games this year, more launch games than we’ve ever had. It’s an incredibly strong line-up of existing franchises and new things coming. There’s also at some point more content than what people can consume.
WSJ: How do you see the standalone videogame device or traditional console affected by the changing videogame environment brought on by smartphones and tablets?
Spencer: A standalone gaming device could be seen as something from a previous generation. When we started with the Xbox One, it was about how do we design a device that integrates into the ecosystem that people already know and love, letting them bring their devices into the play experience with SmartGlass, letting me watch TV, play games browse the Web, Skype with my friends on an interface that feels very familiar to people. We’re trying to turn that television sceen into an interactive screen like any other screen that I work with. I think it’s important that consoles come up to speed with what these other devices do.
WSJ: How has the management changes at Xbox affected the machine’s launch plans?
Spencer: It’s exciting times at Microsoft. The Xbox One is a product where we started the design process a couple years ago and now we’re in the process of finalizing hardware and the games. Our hardware is now coming off the assembly line. The news around this summer isn’t impactful to where we are with the program. We feel really good about our Nov. 22 launch of the box.
Source : http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2013/09/18/qa-microsofts-spencer-on-xbox-one-demand/
