Microsoft defends the Xbox One's used game policy

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In an interview with Ars Technica, Microsoft's marketing chief for Xbox, Yusuf Mehdi, has defended the licensing and used game policies of the Xbox One, stating that the reaction from gamers was "kind of as we expected". In the long run, he expects that gamers will see the benefits of the policies on the console, as the gaming market shifts to digital-only in favor of physical discs.

He said that Microsoft is "trying to do something pretty big in terms of moving the industry forward for console gaming into the digital world", adding that "we believe digital is better". In the future, Mehdi believes that the move to all-digital will provide the capabilities for different licensing models, although for the time being it's a "big change" that Microsoft needs to educate users about to "make sure that people understand".

Speaking directly about the situation surrounding Microsoft's controversial Xbox One used game policy, Mehdi stated that they weren't simply "giving in" to publishers with the policy, instead they were trying to balance the needs of consumers ("first and foremost") as well as publishers, retailers, and Microsoft themselves.

"Within that, we've tried to optimize, and I think we've found a great balance across all of those dimensions. But there are tradeoffs. We do want to support everyone in that system, beginning with the consumer. But we want publishers to get paid for the great IP they work on. We want retailers to be able to drive and sell our products and make a profit. So we are trying to balance across all those."

Medhi also clarified the situation regarding the sharing of your Xbox One game library with up to ten "family members", despite not being able to give all the details at this stage. According to him, a "family member" doesn't actually have to live in your house - they could be 3,000 miles away - and you'll be able to link/add Xbox Live accounts to access your shared game library, although only one person can play a copy of a shared game at the same time.

Finally, Mehdi also said it was "hard to say" what the reaction from the greater community will be over the Xbox One's various restrictions and policies.

"I think it's fair to say there's a segment of consumers at this show in particular who really pay attention, who are very passionate about all aspects of gaming, and that we listen to closely. In a broader set of community, people don't pay attention to a lot of the details. We've seen it in the research, we've seen it in a lot of the data points."

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Source: http://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-defends-the-xbox-ones-used-game-policy

Comments

"Microsoft defends the Xbox One's used game policy" :: Login/Create an Account :: 124 comments

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imgurPosted:

Thank god everything is all fixed now though, the old policy sucked..

imgurPosted:

Reeve Make up your minds, you money grabbing f@gs.


They fixed it, chill.

ReevePosted:

Make up your minds, you money grabbing f@gs.

TaigaAisakaPosted:

SwagDaddyYolo And now it's not here. Didn't they say they weren't going to change it at E3?


Things change when they have people barking down their necks.

neboPosted:

And now it's not here. Didn't they say they weren't going to change it at E3?

Michelangelo-Posted:

Looks like they realized how much of a stupid idea this was.. check the new articles they changed their mind

Finisher5Posted:

Money Money Money thats all they care about... Which is good for them but kinda sucks for us

BeardaBestPosted:

Aggie They are just trying to clear up a mess they have made.

But they are doing a crappy job.


I don't think so. Being able to share all my games with 10 friends is better than having to drive to a friends house to pick up a copy of a ps4 game.

As far as sharing games goes, Xbone wins.

slapshot101Posted:

Nobody in the long run will even like tis program then or think it is a good one, it doesn't do anything over a period of time, it just makes less people buy the new console.

ExoticWolfsPosted:

ZaTeexiCrownzx Only a junky would trust microsoft after the NSA scandal. DON'T SUPPORT MICROSOFT!


Then I guess I am a junky, along with many more people.