There have been some pretty bearish comments regarding the Xbox division from an investors perspective recently. I think the Xbox is a great gaming platform but a terrible business. Of course, Microsoft says they are thinking long-term, but at what point do you just cut it loose when the red drips deeper and deeper?
I believe MSFT is hoping the Xbox 360 is their way into consumer electronics, similar to Sony's play with the PS3. However, rather than being an impetus for consumers to re-buy Sony movies on the Blu-Ray format, MSFT will sell content over Xbox Live (similar to Apple's big iTunes business today). This will hopefully also have synergies for the Zune, but I don't see it happening. They really haven't made it widely known to consumers that the Xbox 360 can do what an Apple TV does (cept requires an additional WiFi adapter). I don't think many consumers perceive the 360 as a media hub.
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I believe MSFT is hoping the Xbox 360 is their way into consumer electronics, similar to Sony's play with the PS3. However, rather than being an impetus for consumers to re-buy Sony movies on the Blu-Ray format, MSFT will sell content over Xbox Live (similar to Apple's big iTunes business today). This will hopefully also have synergies for the Zune, but I don't see it happening. They really haven't made it widely known to consumers that the Xbox 360 can do what an Apple TV does (cept requires an additional WiFi adapter). I don't think many consumers perceive the 360 as a media hub.