Joystiq had a chance to speak with Xbox Chief Product Officer Marc Whitten this evening, following the company's DRM policy changes on Xbox One, and figured if we're already talking about changes, how about that $499 price?

"We really believe deeply in the value that we're delivering. Not just for the first day of launch, which we think is going to be amazing, with amazing games and entertainment experiences, but what this architecture can deliver over the long term." said Whitten. "We feel good about our price."

What about changing the price by removing the Kinect?

"We still absolutely believe in Kinect. It's a core part of the architecture. Frankly, it's really critical that you build it as something that's always there, always part of the platform. So that game creators, experience creators can know they can rely on it. And you, the user, that there's always a consistent experience. That it's not just an accessory."

Consumers aren't the only ones happy with today's changes. Both GameStop and rental service GameFly have applauded Microsoft for today's Xbox One policy shift.

Posted: Jun 20, 2013 8:49 pm
Related Forum: Xbox Forum

Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2013/06/19/xbox-one-sticking-with-499-price-kinect-still-core-part-of-e/