For one thing, they could have dropped the Xbox brand name. It's done nothing but weigh them down this gen

For a second thing, they could have tried buying rights for JRPGS that Japanese people already know and love, not spend millions on original titles they're wary of in a diminishing market.

For a third thing they could have shipped a system that didn't have the exact same disc sctratching stigma that blighted the first Xbox in the region.

For a fourth thing they could have tried making new kinds of games that appeal to the people like Nintendo have; the hardcore Japanese market was in serious decline even before 360.

For a fifth thing they could have employed marketers who recognised "DO! DO! DO!" pisses people off even in Japan, and deosn't connect to 360.

For a sixth thing they could have spread their considerable finances on securing support from a larger number of less high profile titles rather than the small number of AAA big ass titles: It made the linup look thin, and when N3 and Blue Dragon failed on the back of massive cash investments and advertising, it scared smaller 3rd parties off of even trying.

For a seventh thing, they could have tried securing more than one representative game from each Japanese oriented genre, instead of 15 FPSs and 2 beat-em-ups.

For an eighth thing, they should have figured out how to make it and the power unit smaller and quieter. Not such a big deal, and it appears every unit would burst into flames if any smaller, but the Wii gets cute points.

Finally, what do Cake Shops have to do with 360's? 

Oh, and if they wanted to get the 5-fold boost they need to reach the heights of 100 million units ala playstation (and their plans) then a 1 million lead over last gen isn't enough.

Well said bugmenot

Drop a brandname they spent billions establishing?  That makes no sense.  I was going to comment on the rest of your post but it's all armchair quarterbacking and nobody knows if any of those suggestions would have changed anything.

they should have teamed up with sega and used their brandname instead, even if only in Japan. Although the sega brand name was pretty good in other countries back then too.

 Agreed. "Xbox" is pretty established now, pretty much a household name.

Yah, I have no idea how that ever seemed like a good idea.  

the xbox was a bad name for something in a japanese market, especially as it was often written as X-Box and not just Xbox. In japan the shape X means wrong, or Batsu! (hence the X on japanese PS pads being the back or no button). The Xbox was often called the batsu box, the wrong box.

Japan doesnt just have a love affiar with RPGs either, look at the charts right now and its a Gundam game at the top, Anime titles are essential for a successful machine in Japan, along with quirky stuff like Horseracing, train driving, dating sims and so on. Offering them a few RPGs was a drop in the ocean.

The big question that can't be answered for several more years is whether the 360 is breaking out of the Xbox owner base. The 360 sold faster than the Xbox in its first year (when it was alone and already had an established brand) but is now below its last year sales and is trending lower. The price cut may change that but we won't know for a few months.

The current percentages are hard to interpret since they could be a harbinger of the 360 taking a much bigger share of the market with its one year lead or they could be an ephemeral result of launching first and selling through its Xbox userbase quicker.  As an example I think we can all agree that the 360's Oct, 2006 100% marketshare was no indicator of where its final market share would be.  Only 9 months later it is still isn't a good indicator.

That won't stop us from predicting and arguing of course. My own guess is that the 360 will barely manage the Xbox's share in the Japan and Europe. There may be a small bump in the US but I think most of the 360's growth will be from the natural growth of the video game market. I expect the 360 to end around 30-35 million which would be a 25-45% increase but the market share would see a smaller bump up from 16% to 17-18%.

Of course there are many things that could change future sales. Must have games, price cuts, market shifts, etc. At least at the moment no system seems to dominate in the game category, even with price cuts the 360 will be well above the Wii and most systems are purchased under $180, and the reliability issue could be a major negative when less dedicated 360 owners start playing Halo 3/Madden 08/GTAIV, etc in earnest and their system breaks on them.

 Even though I see your point, you can't hide the fact that MS has and will favor NA like before. What with the pricecuts and launching of new sku's and all. 

The fact remains that Xbox is not a strong name outside of the US, and it won't be either if trends continue.  

hum the only reason PS is strong in europe it's because it became a generic name.... over their aunt martha doesn't say.... hey tobby you want a console for chrsitmas???? it's hey tobby you want a playsatation for chrsitmas????
but trust me all the geek(understand people more aware than aunt martha lol) I know (and I know a lot through different channels, several Ks) if they happen to be interested by buying a console and are not hanged by any form of fanboyism.... they are all looking to buy an XB and that is true for any nationality I have in my european contact lists.....
the thing is a lot of people are waiting to be sure the RRoD pb is over but then I wouldn't be so sure that PS will dominate over in EU.... do better probably dominate I doubt it....once the RRoD is corrected and it has been verified i'm pretty sure you'll see a jump in EU sales.... people are in stand by if they weren't the PS3 would be flying sky high since the launch.....

for japan I liked the team up with sega idea.... but still japanese and US products doesn't go together.... and we all know why....