The next Xbox: Why this launch is so critical for Microsoft

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Next Tuesday, May 21, is a Very Big Day for Microsoft. With the rest of the technology world watching, the company will take the stage at 10 a.m. Pacific time in Redmond to reveal the new generation of Xbox, whatever form (or name) it may take. This is the world into which this new Xbox… Read More…

Photo: Microsoft building a gigantic tent for next week’s Xbox unveiling

The house that Xbox built is underway, hopefully we get better weather by the 21st. #XboxReveal

There’s a little more than a week to go until Microsoft unveils the next generation of the Xbox, at a special event May 21 on the the company’s Redmond campus. And here’s an early indication of how big the event will be. The photo above was posted by Aaron Greenberg, the Xbox chief of staff,… Read More…

Bored this weekend? Xbox Live Gold is free for everyone

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If you’ve wanted to experience the benefits of Xbox Live’s Gold service but didn’t want to dent your wallet, Microsoft is providing a nice little treat this weekend. Starting this morning and running through Monday morning, Xbox Live Silver members can enjoy the benefits of a Gold membership without charge. That means Xbox owners in… Read More…

Xbox chief: Main rivals are Nintendo, Sony, Apple and Google … but not Valve

Don Mattrick

The competitive landscape for Microsoft’s Xbox console is expanding to include Apple and Google, but the company’s top game and entertainment executive doesn’t see Valve’s move into the living room as particularly competitive with what Microsoft is doing. That was one of the more interesting tidbits from media event on Microsoft’s Redmond campus yesterday. The… Read More…

Microsoft: 24M Kinects sold, Xbox Live hits 46M members

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Microsoft this afternoon released a wave of stats related to the Xbox 360, including Xbox Live membership growth and the first official update on Kinect sales in more than a year. The company says it has now sold 24 million Kinect sensors since the motion controller launched in the fall of 2010. That’s up from… Read More…

Struggling Nintendo sells 3 million Wii U consoles, lowers forecasts again

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Nintendo’s quarterly numbers are out and the company managed to sell 3.06 million Wii U consoles worldwide during the holiday quarter, following the launch of the new console in November. Combined sales of the Wii and Wii U were about 5.3 million units in the quarter — together coming up short of Microsoft’s Xbox 360,… Read More…

Xbox 360 ‘Kinect Effect’ fades as console market declines

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A little more than a year ago, in the fall of 2011, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 business was basking in the glow of the “Kinect Effect”. Interest in the motion controller was driving record sales of the Xbox 360 a full six years after its release — a whopping 8.2 million units sold for the 2011 holiday… Read More…

Xbox 360 wins holiday season in U.S., marks two straight years atop market

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The Xbox 360 is champ once again. Microsoft’s console was the best-selling console in the United States last month, marking 24 consecutive months atop the video game market. NPD research firm released its monthly December’s statistics and the Xbox 360 sold 1.4 million units last month. Even though that led all consoles, it’s an 18… Read More…

Wii U posts big first week, but Xbox 360 is still champ for now

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Xbox 360 was the top-selling game console in the U.S. for November, kicking off the critical holiday shopping season with 1.26 million units sold, according to data compiled by the NPD research firm and reported publicly by Microsoft. It’s the Xbox 360′s 23rd straight month as the top-selling home console in the U.S. — helped… Read More…