I kinda get what you are saying Zen, I think the xbox 360 has done what Microsoft really wanted to accomplish, get most 3rd parties into their console, this builds up their brand.

But someone in this thread or some other thread, stated MS lost 6 billion in xbox, I have no idea if thats right but I do think they lost some billions. Only Microsoft can take this long to try to break into a business, any billions they lost doesn't even phase them the slightest. I think it is pretty obvious now xbox 360 will be in last place but they took a chunk away from PS, they are gonna try to get a chunk away for Nintendo. They are going to keep doing this next gen, the next, the next after that and so on. They have the resources to do it.

WOW the 360 is falling fast and for no apparent reason, people most not want it.
At its current price you should not have to wait for Christmas to see "the real effect," instead, MS should be reporting that they can't meet demand, but like some already said, this is only one week.

          Very well written.....

But please dont throw a wrench in all the "360 is doomed" talk generated by this weeks number.  You might anger all the Sony Fanboys...XD...lol, it is too much fun to read....lol.

Well, that's wrong. Without the Sony brand, the PS3 would have been a disaster. Why do you think it's selling so well in others? Is that based upon its brand, in some capacity?

Anyway, my assertion was that Microsoft is focused on building the Xbox brand, I didn't mention if that was a sound strategy or not. It's undeniable that MS is focused on brand building with the Xbox. However, we can disagree on how important brand is, which we do.

You'd be surprised how quickly your brand goes down the toilet when you try to sell it for 599$.

Anyway, brand certainly isn't everything. However, early adopters next gen won't automatically assume that FFXIV is a PS4 exclusive. Brand is like a starting point, from which you build. You maintain hype and brand from previous generations, but that doesn't mean that you still don't stand on your current merit. That is why coasting is such a horrible idea. Nintendo never coasts. They make missteps, yes, and they have successes, but consistantly reworking their brand and strategy to fit the market.

To be fair, Sony is trying to reshape its brand in a first party image, and give it mascots, along the lines of Nintendo. This is especially apparent with LBP. However, due to the lack of efficiency in return on investment, and cost to compete, Sony has really dropped the ball when it comes to 3rd parties this gen. Their brand is no long associated with Final Fantasy, Tekken, DMC, or Grand Theft Auto. This is directly attributed to Microsofts strategy.

Next generation, the Xbox will be in a stronger potential position than they were when the 360 launched, in all territories. The Playstation will be in a worse position than they were when the PS3 launched. Now, while the outcome of the console war is large and in part due to mistakes and successes performed at the very inception of the products, brand is very important for early adopters, and while it doesn't play a huge role comparitively, would you buy a Atari Huxron 4000 machine next generation? Or a playstation 4? You'd buy a Playstation 4, because it has the word Playstation in it. That's a brand.

http://vgchartz.com/ehweekly.php it

it got 48K

 my point is that people were saying the exact same thing last year on this very website- "wait until after the holidays to see how things really shape up for the ps3". nobody thought the ps3 would hold up after the holidays, and guess what happened? the ps3 outsold the 360 for the first half of this year. the only thing that stopped it was a price cut for the 360, which is slowly losing it's effect.

See, you don't understand the basic concept here. Mistakes happen. Overall strategy remains the same. Microsoft's strategy involves spending large amounts of money to increase its brand. Look at the original Xbox. They didn't spend money on it to make money. They did it to introduce themselves into a marketplace, for the longterm.

They didn't "buy" the strategy. Nobody on a street corner was like, "Hey Microsoft, I got a strategy over here 10 bucks. Beat Sony." No, they formulated a strategy, and the strategy was to spend hellified cheese on the Xbox and the Xbox 360, to please customers and increase brand recognition and marketshare. Yeah, they bought brand recognition and marketshare. Their plan worked well.

Ask yourself this. If Microsoft hadn't made the monumental mistake of RRoD this generation, would it still be doomed to 3rd place? If it fixes that issue next gen, will Sony still be able to coast into second?

If Sony hadn't made the monumental mistake of releasing at a high price point this generation, would it still have to play catch up? If it fixes that issue next gen, will MS still be able to rely on money and releasing a year early next gen?

(I can do that too)

Yes the 360 had the RROD, but it focused on fixing the problem yes? ~ yes

MS is lowing it's prices and buying it's brand: ?

You do know that systems lower their prices right? it's the cycle of life with consoles & handhelds.

It doesn't matter if MS is buying exclusives, or begging for them, the point is their going after them. 

I love how people say MS is buying Exclusives, but when Sony gave $$$$ to rockstar for GTA on PS2 nobody said a word..

Not to mention other exclusives on the PS3, PS2,.

Why is it bad when MS buys exclusives? but ok if other companies do it?

Heck what about the companies that agreed to the deal?

Hypocritical to say the least.