Microsoft took the wraps off its next generation Xbox 360 games console on Friday — and took the gloves off in the latest round of an fight to dominate the $11-billion market.
In a star-studded launch that was scheduled to be broadcast early this morning on MTV America and presented by the Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood, the firm paraded a product it says will ”kick the backsides” of its rivals.
Xbox 360, which can play videogames, DVDs, CDs and connect to the internet, is due to arrive in United States shops for Christmas but no European launch date has been confirmed. Microsoft claims it will raise the bar in gaming.
”It’s certainly very important,” said Nick Parker of the research firm Screen Digest. ”Xbox has built up an incredible reputation with developers, so it should also have good support. But will it be the most exciting product this year? That’s probably still going to be the Sony PSP [PlayStation Portable]. We don’t even know when the new Xbox will launch here in Europe.”
Friday’s launch marks the latest strike in the battle between electronics giants seeking to dominate the gaming industry, which is now bigger business than cinema. Such announcements are usually made at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, to be held next week, but Microsoft brought it forward after its Japanese rival Sony said it planned to unveil its PlayStation 3 earlier than expected.
The Microsoft chairperson, Bill Gates, signed up a stellar guestlist including the actors Scarlett Johansson and Joseph Fiennes and the bands the Killers and Snow Patrol for the event.
With PlayStation 3 thought to be hitting the high street next year, and Nintendo unlikely to move quickly with its Revolution console, Microsoft will hope to steal a march on its rivals. Indications are that Xbox 360 will cost less than the original Xbox, which, at first, cost $557.
”I think PlayStation 3 will be more powerful,” said Marcus Dyson, the publisher of the games website www.Spong.com. ”But what Microsoft are planning for their online service, Xbox Live, will make it more compelling.”
Microsoft will be confident that it can build on the qualified success of the original, which has sold nearly 20-million units in 3 years. Its figures outstrip the Nintendo GameCube, but lag behind the PlayStation 2, which has sold 80-million.
Xbox has been a costly venture for the Seattle-based company, with each one currently sold at a loss and the firm’s home and entertainment division losing more than $1.2-billion last year. But Gates is convinced it remains a key plank in his corporation.
”Our goal in the last generation was to be in the game,” he said this month. ”We came out of this round a strong number two. What we’ve got, at some significant financial cost, was the right to play again with great credibility.” – Guardian Unlimited Â