XBOX360 USB Pro
Archive for the ‘Industry News’ Category
October 15th, 2010 | 
Author: From gamasutra.com:
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Hardware has seen the largest year-to-date revenue drop, down 13 percent from $3.57 billion in 2009 to $3.09 billion so far this year, while 2010 software sales of $4.93 billion in 2010 are running 8 percent behind the $5.36 billion at this point last year. Accessory sales were up five percent for the year so far, from $144 billion through September ’09 to $1.52 billion currently for 2010.
Though NPD no longer publicly reveals specific numbers or relative rankings for monthly system sales, Microsoft’s Aaron Greenberg revealed via Twitter that the Xbox 360 sold 483,989 units in September, a 37 percent increase over September last year. This makes September the best sales month yet in 2010 for the system, which is up 34 percent year-to-date over this point in 2009.
NPD’s analyst report indicates the Nintendo Wii and Sony PS3 were down compared to the same month last year, meaning the systems sold less than 462,800 and 491,800 units, respectively, for the month.
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Full Story: gamasutra.com
Posted in 
From arstechnica.com:
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Massive was Microsoft’s push into video game advertising and, since we live in an ad-filled world and games seek to mimic that reality, it seemed like a good fit. According to a report by Media Week however, the company has long been troubled, and will soon be shutting its doors.
The problem? Microsoft would rather advertise in Xbox Live, where it doesn’t have to split the profits with publishers. EA recently pulled its business from Massive in order to sell ads internally. It’s not that you will be seeing less advertising in games, it just seems as if those making large bets on in-game ads would simply rather keep larger cuts for themselves.
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Full Story: arstechnica.com
From gamasutra.com:
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Microsoft on Friday made official the promotion of Don Mattrick to president of the company’s Interactive Entertainment Business, following the formal retirement of 22-year Microsoft veteran Robbie Bach.
Mattrick, formerly SVP of the Interactive Entertainment Business, will oversee consumer entertainment initiatives at Microsoft, including Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Kinect, Zune Music and Video, Mediaroom, PC and mobile entertainment.
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Full Story: gamasutra.com
From gamasutra.com:
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Microsoft removed a standalone processor from Kinect because there was ?no need? for its inclusion, not as previously rumored, to merely reduce the cost of the device.
?We didn?t know how much processing Kinect was going to take at the start of development,? said Tsunoda. ?Obviously, you don?t want to lose any of the things that are important to Xbox customers. Graphic fidelity is something that Xbox has always been known for, and you want to make sure that you still hit that level.”
“Forza is a graphical showpiece, and we had Forza with Kinect at E3? the graphic fidelity has actually improved in some areas from what they shipped with Forza 3. It?s still running at 60 FPS and it?s supporting Kinect, so there?s just no need to have that extra processor.?
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Full Story: gamasutra.com
From eurogamer.net:
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Microsoft has warned that messy floors “with clothes all over the place” will prevent Kinect from working properly. Better have a quick tidy.
The company also advised against putting the sensor in “a noisy environment”, using the examples “on top of your Xbox” and “on top of your subwoofer”.
“We rely on the floor for a number of different parts of the technology,” said Mark Plagge, Kinect’s senior project manager, during a set-up video.
“The ideal play space starts about six feet away from the Kinect sensor. Some games will need you to move side to side quite a lot, so you’ll want to know there are three-to-four feet on either side of you.”
The requirements don’t stop there. People with halogen spotlit rooms may encounter difficulties, as the Kinect sensor prefers an even light source throughout.
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Full Story: eurogamer.net
From gamespot.com:
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According to a survey by the industry research group [NPD] spanning three months, 75 percent of consumers 13 and older did not download digital content on any platform at all. Some 15 percent downloaded content via a PC or Mac, 4 percent through a smartphone, and 2 percent connected via a Blu-ray Disc player or a digital video player, such as Apple TV or Roku. (The sample size of the study was not provided.)
The remaining 6 percent downloaded content via a connected “game player,” a category that covers the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii.
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Full Story: gamespot.com
From kotaku.com:
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The eBox [Chinese game machine - dubbed "Kinect clone"] will come with 30 games built in and a set-top camera that can detect a player’s movements, according to the article. According to Eedoo Technology, the company behind the product, this is only the second controller-free console.
“I think it’s all about who builds the best experiences,” Microsoft Game Studios exec Phil Spencer recently told Kotaku. “I don’t think anybody longs to buy a piece of plastic to put under their TV. I think what it’s going to be able is who has the best games and experiences for people. I think it’s always been about that and should be.”
“We don’t really know anything about it other than that press release that went out,” a Microsoft spokesperson pointed out. “Nobody really knows what it is doing and how it’s doing it. We don’t know about its content. There isn’t a lot of clarity on it.”
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Full Story: kotaku.com
From the MS press release:
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Microsoft Corp. today announced the further international expansion of Zune, its digital entertainment service. This fall, Zune will expand its music and video footprint and bring the free Zune software, Zune Marketplace online store, Zune Pass1 music subscription service and enhanced features on Zune.net to new markets, providing a comprehensive entertainment experience on Windows-based PCs, on the go with Windows Phone 7 and in your living room through Xbox LIVE [Gold]
Zune Marketplace online store is accessible from within the Zune software and offers the ability to purchase millions of individual songs or albums from its catalog, all in MP3 format. Here, consumers can also subscribe to Zune Pass,4 which provides unlimited downloads and music streaming capabilities from the Zune music library, including content from major music labels such as Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music and Warner Music Group, as well as thousands of independent labels. Zune Marketplace also has a large library of videos from major studios such as Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution for purchase or rental. Video purchases will be accessible through Xbox LIVE and Windows-based PCs, and can also be added to a Windows Phone 7. Simply buy your favorite video from Zune Marketplace and watch it on the screen of your choice.
The fall 2010 international expansion of the Zune music and video service includes the following:
Zune Marketplace will extend services to several markets in Europe and beyond.
* Zune Pass (U.K., France, Italy and Spain). The monthly music subscription service will be available for 9.99 euros /8.99 pounds per month for unlimited download and streaming access to the Zune music catalog and will be accessible on Windows-based PCs, Windows Phone 7 and Xbox LIVE. The offer in the U.S. will remain at $14.99 per month for unlimited downloads and streaming access, with the ability to keep 10 MP3s per month.8
* Music purchase (U.K., France, Italy, Spain and Germany). Expansion to these markets will enable consumers to purchase MP3s and listen on their Windows-based PC, Windows Phone 7 or any other device that supports MP3 format. Users will also be able to purchase music videos to enjoy on Windows-based PC, Windows Phone 7 and Zune on Xbox LIVE.
* Video purchase (U.K., France, Germany, Canada, Australia and New Zealand). Consumers will now be able to purchase movies to download and watch anywhere ? on the big screen in the living room with Xbox LIVE or their Windows-based PC as well as sync it to their Windows Phone 7 to enjoy on the go.9
* Movie rental (U.K., France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Mexico, Canada, Australia and New Zealand). In addition to Zune video on Xbox LIVE, consumers in these countries will now be able to rent movies for viewing on their Windows-based PC or choose to sync the rental to their Windows Phone 7.
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Read the full press release here[microsoft.com]
From gamasutra.com:
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Greenberg is very bullish on Kinect, predicting three million sales this holiday season, globally.
“Our key indicators are feedback from retailers — I think you’d be surprised at how sophisticated they are, and they really have the pulse of the market. They’re looking at preorders, they’re talking to customers.
“We’re also done our own research. We believe this will be the biggest launch in our history, for Xbox. We will sell more Kinect sensors than we did [systems] at Xbox 360 launch.”
“Our estimates that we will sell in excess of 3 million units this holiday,” The company is spending “hundreds of millions” of dollars in marketing, “exceeding in what we did when we launched the original Xbox 360,” says Greenberg.
The generation, at this rate, seems to be tracking longer. Of course Sony has always talked about a 10-year cycle, but so does Greenberg. “We do think that this generation is unique. We’re treating the launch of Kinect as an entirely new platform launch, as almost a new generation. For us that does extend the product life cycle.”
At this point in the Xbox 360′s lifespan, he says, “we’re five years in. We think we have another good five years-plus, but that remains to be seen — but easily there’s another five years’ life.”
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Full Story: gamasutra.com
From the MS press release:
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It’s official: the “Halo” video game franchise has made history once again. Microsoft today announced that “Halo: Reach” generated more than $200 million in sales in the United States and Europe in the first 24 hours of its release. Based on U.S. sales alone, “Halo: Reach” is now the biggest entertainment launch of 2010 in the U.S., eclipsing the three-day opening weekends of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters like “Iron Man 2,” “Alice in Wonderland” and “Toy Story 3″ in a single day.
“‘Halo: Reach’ is the biggest game Microsoft has ever released, and its launch has already surpassed every game, movie and entertainment launch this year,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. “Every major installment has grown in scope and popularity, firmly cementing the ‘Halo’ franchise as one of the most popular entertainment properties in the world over the past decade.”
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Full Press Release: here
