Microsoft Email Hints to No Always-On for Next Xbox

[exfileme]

Many service like live TV will still work offline.

Microsoft Email Hints to No Always-On for Next Xbox : Read more

 

[esrever]

Who would have guessed.

 

[whiteodian]

I could see individual games requiring an online connection (depends on who makes it), but most games and DVD playback shouldn't require always on. Glad to see this rumor be squashed. We shall know more on the 21st.

 

[DelightfulDucklings]

Honestly, did anyone actually think MS would be stupid enough to make it always on?

 

[sunshine240sx]

DelightfulDucklings
Honestly, did anyone actually think MS would be stupid enough to make it always on?
Honestly, hell yes! this is the same company that charges you $15 a month to use your own internet connection. I am more surprised that they would back down on something like this.

 

[bak0n]

"but many services will work without it, including single-player games". Now if only ubisoft and EA would follow suit.

 

[Achoo22]

This is absolutely NOT GOOD ENOUGH.
Microsoft feels absolutely comfortable collecting tons of data for transmission upon next connect - everything from the minute actions you take within each game (skip cut-scenes, not skip), channels you watch, time of activity, possibly using built-in Kinect to monitor and report habitation patterns, and even photos and/or sound recordings. Our crappy government is waaaayyyy behind the curve when it comes to legislating privacy, and this information will all be up for grabs legally. Storage is sufficiently cheap that data will be stored in perpetuity. Being able to run the device in offline mode from day one until the end of days is the only reasonable protection a customer can hope for.

 

[jack1982]

Why do they word their internal emails as if they're advertisements?

 

[shikamaru31789]

@DelightfulDucklings I never believed the rumors about always online. The always online rumor never had any credible sources, the closest to being credible was Adam Orth's twitter statements and those were quickly found out to be personal trolling attempts directed at Manveer Heir, a Bioware designer who was a friend of Orth. And there were several reports, some from credible sources, saying that there was no always online requirement. MS is sure to know how poor the internet infrastructure is in countries like the US, Canada, and Australia, and they know the US is their best selling market, the only major market where the 360 lead the PS3 in sales. They're not going to do something that will cost them most of their customers in their leading market.

 

[mman74]

Trust me, there is a reason why they took this long to respond. They wanted it always online, they tested the waters, they saw the consumer backlash and now they are backtracking. And that's a good thing.

 

[demonhorde665]

if MS nukes second hand sales , this console will tank like an exxon made boat.

 

[Gary Mount]

You can watch live TV now via Media Center on your home network with the current xbox.

 

[mobrocket]

second hand sales I think will fade away eventually. It doesnt help console makers or game developers
and with game budgets now getting to be like movies, i think u will see a shift

 

[southernshark]

It sounds good. I hope this means that second hand sales will be fine. But either way I'm going to buy one. It looks like a great product really (unless MS gives it the special W8 treatment of course).

 

[dalethepcman]

That anyone ever believed that a console would prevent you from playing a single player game when not online just proves how stupid some people are. Unless the console was made by EA of course.