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Report: Xbox Europe VP Chris Lewis retiring
Chris Lewis, vice-president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business for EMEA, is retiring from the company this year, MCV reports. Joining Microsoft UK in 1989, Lewis spearheaded the company's Specialist Center reseller program in Europe, and later served as the company's regional vice-president for retail sales and marketing. Lewis took on his role at Xbox Europe in 2008, helping to promote and expand the Xbox 360's presence across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Xbox chief marketing and strategy officer Yusuf Mehdi notes that Lewis departs the company this year in order to "focus on his other business and personal interests." "[Lewis] has been a distinguished leader for our Xbox team in Europe - overseeing the launch of the original Xbox, Xbox 360, Kinect and most recently Xbox One, and growing the business significantly across the region," Mehdi said. "We wish Chris nothing but the best, and we thank him for everything he's contributed to Xbox and Microsoft as a whole over the past 25 years." [Image: Microsoft]
European Xbox boss not feeling pressured to cut 360 price
It's the question every potential buyer wants to know: Will Microsoft respond to Sony's $50 PS3 price cut with an Xbox 360 price cut of its own? After all, it didn't take long for Microsoft to match the lower price of Sony's PS3 Slim, first unveiled at Gamescom two years ago. But over a week in and there's still no sign of a price cut coming from Redmond. At $200 for the 4GB Xbox 360 and $300 for the abnormally large 250GB model, Sony's $250 160GB PS3 not only bests the 'box on hardware (hello Blu-ray!) but on price as well. So what's Microsoft going to do about it? Nothing, apparently. When asked if he was "feeling any pressure to move [price] down a little" in response to the PS3 price cut, European Xbox bigwig Chris Lewis told VG247 simply, "No." He elaborated, "We think we offer great value now," pointing to features like Xbox Live and Kinect, but insisted, "We're happy with our position." If we were in Lewis' position, tasked with beating back Sony's European sales lead, "happy" probably wouldn't be our first response to Sony's aggressive pricing.
Microsoft EMEA VP: Xbox 'about halfway through' life because of Kinect
Thanks to Kinect, the Xbox 360 is enjoying an extended lifespan (we're required by law to joke here that it's the second or third lifespan for many of your non-slim Xboxes). Microsoft's VP of Interactive Entertainment Business for EMEA, Chris Lewis, told MCV, "We see it as about halfway through." He added, "Kinect put a huge shot of adrenaline into the business," likely not referring to last year's infusion of unsold copies of Adrenalin Misfits. Lewis said that Microsoft deliberately targeted families and younger players with its initial Kinect offerings, and now it's moving more into "core" games. "What you will see is us using Kinect to enhance the experience and not detract from it," Lewis said. "I don't think our core gamers will tolerate anything else from us."
Microsoft says to expect non-casual, 'hybrid' Kinect games 'over the coming 18 months'
Excited by some of the possibilities Kinect offers for non-casual games? Then it looks like you might have a bit of a wait in store. Speaking with GamesIndustry.biz, Microsoft's VP for Interactive Entertainment in Europe, Chris Lewis, went to some length to point out that Microsoft isn't ignoring core gamers, but would only go as far as to say that non-casual, "hybrid" games that use both Kinect and a standard controller would likely become available "over the coming 18 months or so." Not many more details beyond that, unfortunately, but Lewis did divulge a bit of UK news, saying that sales went up "1,000 percent week-over-week with an 84 per cent market share" following the release of the new, redesigned Xbox 360.
Report: European marketing VP David Gosen leaves Microsoft
David Gosen has left his post as Microsoft's VP of Strategic Marketing for EMEA territories, two years after being brought on to help expand Microsoft's foothold in Europe. The former I-Play CEO and managing director of Nintendo Europe plans "to explore new opportunities outside of the company," according to MCV. Chris Lewis, the VP of interactive entertainment who will now oversee the European marketing team, suggests that Gosen has fulfilled his objective while at Microsoft. "The Xbox marketing team and Live business in EMEA has made great progress over the last two years," he said, "during a phase of consistent investment and innovation." The last we heard, Xbox 360 sales had crossed the 10 million mark in Europe alone. And now Gosen must answer the call of another brand that needs expansion in Europe. There's the Gosen-signal now! Gosen to the rescue!
Microsoft: Natal launch details 'not accurate'
While reports circulated last week that Project Natal would launch sometime in November 2010, Xbox UK boss Neil Thompson says the details were only rumors. Speaking with Eurogamer at a launch event in London for the console's new social media applications, Thompson said the rumors "weren't accurate" and claimed Microsoft has yet to determine "a lot of things" related to the launch of its new motion-sensing technology. According to the rumors, Microsoft was set to ship around five million Project Natal units next fall, alongside 14 supporting titles at a price point that could go as low as $50 (£30). When asked about the rumored details and price, Xbox's head of Europe, Chris Lewis, jokingly added, "Now you know better than to listen to that stuff! We will announce in good time." However, Lewis did remind Eurogamer that Microsoft is striving for "unique" and "compelling" experiences with the technology. "That has to happen and will happen," he said. As long as whatever "happens" doesn't follow Microsoft's traditional Xbox 360 peripheral pricing scheme, we'll be happy.
Xbox 360 sells over 9 million in Europe
The Xbox 360 has reached a milestone in Europe, having recently surpassed nine million console sales in the region. Microsoft's Chris Lewis confirmed the figure to MCV, stating that the console now has "about 27 per cent of the current share of the console market." For those of you keepng score at home, that's about a million consoles sold since January.In fact, Microsoft also boasted that it's the only console to show growth in the region, pointing to the downward slope in sales of the PS3 and Wii. "This calendar year, we're the only console showing positive growth. That's 22 per cent on the first half against a market that is down to a similar margin overall." In fact, there are so many Xbox 360s in Europe now, you could probably build a 15 foot wall around Liechtenstein ... twice.
Microsoft shrugs off PlayStation 2 price cut
If you were holding your breath for Microsoft's response to the PlayStation 2's recently announced $99 price point, it's now safe to exhale -- Microsoft vice-president of interactive entertainment business Chris Lewis recently issued a calm, cool and collected statement regarding the discount, stating, "The future lies in the growth of current generation consoles," a future in which he's confident the Xbox 360 will continue to trump the PS3.Considering the original Xbox has been discontinued for nearly three years, Microsoft hasn't had a horse in the sixth-generation race for quite some time now. Still, it'll be interesting to see if the bargain-priced PS2 can take a bigger chunk out of current-gen console sales in light of the not-so-awesome state of the economy.
Microsoft's Lewis on used games, Windows 7 gaming
Speaking to GI.biz, Chris Lewis, VP for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices division in Europe, managed to put a positive spin on used game sales. Typically maligned by the industry for hurting sales of new games, Lewis noted that used games offer gamers the opportunity to play games they might not ordinarily play. According to Lewis, used games get "more people touching, playing, experiencing a game," which he believes is a good thing for the games industry. Naturally, that doesn't stop Lewis from suggesting that the promise of premium DLC might be a good way to keep gamers from selling their games, though he reiterates his belief that used games are "a positive thing." Given GameStop COO J. Paul Raines' recent comments suggesting that most consumers sell their games to help pay for new ones, Lewis may be right.Regarding games on Windows 7, Lewis notes that the upcoming OS will be "great for games." He adds, "It's all good news - it's even more robust, it's quicker relatively, and the early testing cycles are proving very promising overall." We hope that's true, though the "relatively" bit has us a little nervous.
Xbox 360 hits 6 million in Europe
"Self-defence!" it'll claim, noting how people simply wouldn't "stop pressing my buttons." Also, the European Xbox 360 can talk. No wonder it's managed to "hit" 6 million people, a figure which Microsoft's Chris Lewis, Vice President of Interactive Entertainment Business EMEA and apparent violence fetishist, is "very excited" by. "We're very excited that more consumers in Europe are joining the ever-growing Xbox 360 community," Lewis said. "We're now the best-value next-gen console on the market with an entry-level ERP of €179/£129.99, and consumers have clearly responded to that offering." He went on to promise that a "launch-level" advertising campaign would, uh, launch in the region next week, promoting titles like "Lips, Scene It?; You're In The Movies and Fable 2." Yes, he really did put Fable 2 at the very end of the list.
Microsoft Europe's Chris Lewis sees Wii as the once-in-a-while console
Head honcho of Microsoft Europe was quick to put down the Wii in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz recently. He is of the mind that success in the mass market is determined less by gameplay and more by other factors. The way we've always seen it, games define the system.Now that the Xbox 360 apparently got a price cut over there, it's being offered to consumers for less money than the Wii. Lewis thinks that the price of the 360, along with its games and digital entertainment distribution capabilities will ultimately help it win the console war. He thinks these factors will lead the 360 being seen as a console with more rich content, whereas the Wii is kind of like the 'party appeal' system. "I think you've got to be prepared to be appealing in lots of different areas and make sure you don't become something that only gets yanked out of a cupboard at Christmas and particularly holiday peaks and doesn't really get used the rest of the time," Lewis comments. "I think you've got to be careful with that. I think our depth and breadth of experience will ensure that we never get in any way put into the cupboard in that way."Either way you slice it, playing has been believing and we're not sure Lewis' approach is going to help the 360 dethrone Wii in the territory.
Microsoft hires former Nintendo exec to expand Euro footprint
Microsoft has opened its doors and brought on former I-Play and Nintendo Europe executive David Gosen to fill the role of Strategic Marketing VP for Microsoft's game business in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) territories. In his new role, Gosen will focus on expanding the European Market for the Xbox 360.Prior to putting on his Microsoft hat, Gosen spent more than five years as managing director of Nintendo's European arm, and most recently served as the CEO of mobile game developer and publisher I-Play. He will now report directly to Microsoft's European Interactive VP Chris Lewis, who sees the appointment as all part of Microsoft's new "laser-sharp focus" and its grand scheme to "widen the market for Xbox as a mass-market proposition," no doubt part of that whole 'Europe is key' party line the company toed late last year.
MS touts digital distribution over 'historic' discs
If Euro Xbox boss Chris Lewis is to be believed, a dramatic consumer shift to digitally distributed media is due to occur "sooner than any of us think." With talks of an Xbox 360 Blu-ray add-on now muted, the manufacturer appears to be distancing itself from the Sony-backed high-def format. "Going forwards, digital downloads is really where it's at," Lewis told GamesIndustry.Biz. "More and more people's ongoing and ever-increasing downloading of music and movies is becoming the de facto. I think that's going to happen in very short order; people want to consume that way."We definitely don't want to consume anything past its sell-by date either, as Lewis suggested we'll "look back wistfully at shiny discs as something that was somewhat a historic phenomenon in a way that we kind of think about vinyl or VCRs today." Though we don't outright disagree with Microsoft's same ol' song and dance, predicting a large change within the "next 12-18 months" seems overly optimistic. DVD doesn't look to be going anywhere soon, and neither does the sales traction granted to the PS3 by Blu-ray's recent victory.
MS: PS3 online plans "plagiarism," Blu-ray "forced"
Quotable Chris Lewis of Xbox Europe calls Sony's vague online efforts "plagiarism" and throws in a a car business analogy for good measure. Excerpt: "I'm flattered that they've followed our clear direction," Lewis told UK site Eurogamer. "Plagiarism is a good thing - that in itself isn't such a problem, it's what the market wants. But we've known that's what the market wanted all along."Meanwhile, UK boss Neil Thompson pours salt on an old wound:"This is the company that brought out Betamax – we don't quite know where they're going to go with this," he added, in a pointed reference to Sony's defeat in the format war against VHS...Both execs slam Sony's strategy of "forcing" Beta-ray...I mean Blu-ray on consumers. I have to say I love these guys and their slightly more Churchillian approach. More fanboy fodder here in video form.
Microsoft to announce HD DVD at E3?
So word on the street is Microsoft's all set to announce the Xbox 360's external HD DVD drive at E3 -- which makes perfect sense, in all reality. They did, after all, claim it would be released "this year" when Gates unveiled their plans at CES, and since they launched the 360 at E3 last year, they've got to have something to show off this year while Sony and Nintendo get closer to their respective impending PlayStation 3 and Revolution launches. Chris Lewis, Microsoft Regional Vice President for Europe, the Middle East and Africa sat down with Spiegel Online and let them know that we'll more than likely be seeing an HD DVD announcement at E3 (in addition to that Xbox camera we heard would launch next month), and alluded to the inclusion of HDCP compliance for the Xbox, which could only imply they'll finally release that freaking DVI cable. On the PS3 and Blu-ray, Lewis even volunteered that "Blu-ray right now reminds us of another technology from Sony: Betamax." without even being directly asked. Oh, this war is on, friends, make no mistake about it, and we'll see you at the battlegrounds of E3.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
