Microsoft Apologises For Employee’s Always-Online Tweets

50 responses to “Microsoft Apologises For Employee’s Always-Online Tweets”

1. 

   thom

   April 6, 2013 at 9:25 am

   This is almost certainly happening. Its like the wii specs prior to the launch – if the news was good, they’d tell people before the rumours spiral out of control.

   Reply
   1. 

      thom

      April 6, 2013 at 9:30 am

      I hope I’m wrong, but the way they talk around it makes me pessimistic.

      Reply
   2. 

      hydroleks

      April 6, 2013 at 9:32 am

      Think about it like this. They’re not confirming anything yet. the rumors are spreading and they’re getting more attention as time goes by. Though they can’t leave it for too long, otherwise people lose interest and they lose the attention. If they are really that smart, it’ll be a smart move, but judging right now from current rumors and sources, sadly it will be as we fear.

      Reply
      1. 

         thom

         April 6, 2013 at 9:34 am

         I don’t think there is a safe level of attention on this. People like us come to kotaku, but a lot of people will hear always on, write the console off immediately, and not look into it further.

         Reply
         1. 

            hydroleks

            April 6, 2013 at 9:41 am

            That is true yes. but what’s to say you won’t change your mind once they start marketing?

            Reply
            1. 

               kingpotato

               April 6, 2013 at 10:51 am

               As a very savvy consumer this has made me astoundingly wary of the durango, and at this point there is very little besides the complete removal of any such potential feature on the device that will get me to buy one and I prefer microsoft consoles.

               Other less savvy shoppers who come into contact with this news will hear about it and never give the console another looks.
               The idea that all publicity is good publicity is false, this stuff doing the rounds is extremely DAMAGING to the brand and will only make more consumers jump ship to sony.

               What they should be doing is announce the damn thing before they have lost all their customers, unless of course its true then they are the titanic that has already hit the iceberg. They are going down and its just a matter of how many lives they can save.

            2. 

               piratepete

               April 6, 2013 at 2:22 pm

               I don’t think removal would do it for me if it turns out this is really what they planned. It would just be obvious that this is what they really want to do and only stopped because they got caught, not because they truly believe its better for gaming.

            3. 

               hydroleks

               April 8, 2013 at 8:13 am

               Exactly, hence why I said they can’t leave it for too long. They have to make a move soon and if they choose not to then there will be a loss to them when taking into account audiance such as you and me.

   3. 

      kingpotato

      April 6, 2013 at 10:46 am

      It would seem that way. Which is a shame because durango will be DOA if they do decide to force always online on consumers.

      Reply
2. 

   hydroleks

   April 6, 2013 at 9:28 am

   Joke or no joke he should be reviewed and penalized if not fired. if its true what they said in this article then it is highly likely that he acted outside of what position he signed up for.

   Reply
   1. 

      thom

      April 6, 2013 at 9:32 am

      What I find weird is that although some of the tweets make sense if he’s referring to electricity i.e. ‘always on’, why does he mention getting better Internet in some of the other tweets?

      Reply
      1. 

         hydroleks

         April 6, 2013 at 9:36 am

         Could be cause he’s a douche. I don’t like to call people things, but the situation is that it was a dumb move by him. As for the electricity thing, you can’t compare that to the internet. Its like comparing apples and oranges. You consume and need both, but for different things.

         Reply
         1. 

            zac

            April 6, 2013 at 5:14 pm

            In this context it’s actually appropriate to compare both, however.

            Electricity is required for any console to run. No-one complains that they need power and a television to play on their xbox (except trolls and the odd elitist). In about 10-15 years it’s likely that the internet being required for almost everything will be the norm.

            Looking back 10-15 years we can see the early days of mainstream internet and how it wasn’t important to everyone. It wasn’t even possible to do half the things we do now. As I type this I’m uploading a 5GB file to Youtube so that it can be watched by 2 or 3 people. 10 years ago I probably couldn’t have made this file, let alone send it across the world in a few hours all for practically free.

            We have a skewed view of it down here, but I imagine that those in the US, Microsoft’s key demographic, without the internet are the same people who don’t buy new copies of games, but wait for used copies. These are people that Microsoft do not care about. They aren’t making Microsoft any money, so why should they pander to them? This system is specifically designed to keep them away.

            Don’t get me wrong, I think always-on internet accessibility is ridiculous, but it’s not a bad move when we consider how the future looks. If Durango is wireless (like the revised 360), then there is no real reason for this to be an issue. In the last 7 years I have yet to go with a new internet provider and not get a wireless router. Even on 2GB a month contracts from smaller companies. Internet is not some precious commodity that we are running out of. If it’s the way of the future, then those who refuse to adapt will not be able to keep up and will stay out of the loop.

            Back to the comparison though. If the power goes out, you can’t play your games. With this new platform, if the internet goes out, you can’t play your games. They are very similar in this context. No internet? You may as well have no power. Neither of which is Microsoft’s fault. “But I have the disc, I bought it, it’s mine” that’s a good point, I think there should be a better system, but they want to implement this. Just don’t buy the console if you don’t like the features. If Durango fails, this will show Microsoft that we do not want always-on features. Vote with your wallet

            Reply
            1. 

               fureien

               April 7, 2013 at 12:35 am

               you’re over analysising
               Hydroleks was right

            2. 

               hydroleks

               April 8, 2013 at 8:05 am

               Though I agree with you on a number of points. When you put it like that, but then when you think about it. We still use paper. Eventhough we have access to tablets and other methods of information sharing and access, we still use paper for many reasons, though I know you agree with me about the drm thing, it is rather stupid and tying to force it I would say is not a clever move.

               What I’m trying to say is that they should make things optional and dynamic, rather than not work due to lets say connection prolem. Same concept with paper. its there just in case. If the network goes down, that’s ok we got other ways of getting things done.

3. 

   bagmup

   April 6, 2013 at 9:31 am

   Sorry that he pretty much confirmed everyone’s fears you mean…

   Reply
4. 

   mrwaffle

   April 6, 2013 at 9:59 am

   The pride before the fall. His arrogance that his console will offer anything the PS4 won’t is astounding; Console gaming has become so homogeneous that sales will almost entirely be based on brand loyalty this generation, I bet. This doesn’t help.

   Reply
5. 

   hristinho18

   April 6, 2013 at 10:01 am

   The issuse with Orth are that, firstly he shouldn’t be entertaining speculation unless he is authorised. Creative Director maketh not a PR or spokesman… Indeed perhaps he should spend some more time devising a killer app that DOESNT involve IllumiRoom, now that they have lost the knockout exclusives that made them. Looking at you, Bungie.
   Secondly but more importantly he was being rude and condescending to people ie customers and consumers. Although this attitude coming out of Xbox is no great surprise.

   If Xbox are so arrogant as to demand Always-On & DRM , with the SimCity debacle coming 4 years AFTER the gaming community outright rejected it (remember PC Assassins Creed?), then they deserve the major wake up that they will get. Products and services are interdependent, but the failing of one ENHANCEMENT service should not necessarily mean you cannot use any other PRIMARY one.

   Just try stopping people from playing offline games when either their ISP, or XboxLive itself goes down.

   Reply
6. 

   akira_22

   April 6, 2013 at 11:06 am

   Wow, can Microsoft really be this silly? this is going to cost them install base, pure and simple.

   Reply
7. 

   Master T

   April 6, 2013 at 11:43 am

   People need to harden up. Honestly? complaining about ‘always on’ internet? you mean that thing we’ve had for the last 15-ish years?

   I live in a rural area, even I’ve got some form of internet. Don’t get started blaming the manufacturer for a failing on AUSTRALIA’s part for having a half-assed communications structure. You should be levelling it at the political scene; they’re the ones that can change it. They’re the ones building the NBN and everything in between.

   The level of complaints making a mountain out of a molehill is impressive and the thing isn’t even out yet OR confirmed with that feature.

   Reply
   1. 

      JoeyJoJO

      April 6, 2013 at 11:55 am

      Because our infrastructure is poor we shouldn’t complain about a change to consoles that will rely on said structure when that change is neither required or desired. Logical fallacy ????

      Best strawman argument i’ve seen, I tip my hat at you sir

      Reply
   2. 

      thom

      April 6, 2013 at 12:20 pm

      You’ll find that the infrastructure in Australia is more stable. There are sizeable town in the US that aren’t serviced by ADSL, which is pretty rare here.

      The fact is though, this is completely unneccesary. What will this offer other than piracy protection that can’t be offered optionally?

      Reply
   3. 

      thom

      April 6, 2013 at 12:21 pm

      And what about their end? None of the major publishers have demonstrated that they have the capability to maintain sufficient servers to ensure you’ll be able to access your games. Am I going to be locked out of the console for two days because Halo 5 just came out?

      Reply
      1. 

         Master T

         April 6, 2013 at 1:11 pm

         You cant write of the publisher or manufacturer’s ability to create server space based on demand. NCSoft has managed to create a stable server / client platform within its launch space with Guildwars 2, as did Blizzard with many expansions past The Burning Crusade and performed excellently with StarCraft 2(although spectacularly failed with Diablo3).

         You’re tarring them all with the same brush. Just because one or two fail (example set by EA), doesn’t mean the vast majority will. Activision survive well on every new iteration of Call of Duty – even when there isn’t dedicated servers for the console space; the vast majority of their sales are console based AND using Xbox Live. Microsoft doesn’t fall on its face with poor server support when new games launch on Xbox Live, its generally very usable even on day one.

         Reply
         1. 

            piratepete

            April 6, 2013 at 2:26 pm

            What benefit do we as the consumer get for having an always on? The benefit is entirely for Microsoft.

            Do you honestly think it REQUIRING always online instead of being just online when we want it is in OUR best interest?

            Reply
         2. 

            twistoffate619

            April 6, 2013 at 2:49 pm

            Maybe Microsoft don’t provide “poor server support” when new games launch. But there have been a few days in recent months where people simply couldn’t access xbox live and it took at least quite a few hours to resolve (point being unexpected things happen). Kinda sucks to think that if that were to happen, it’d hit that much harder than it does now given that our consoles would theoretically become totally useless to us when at least now they’re almost entirely functional aside from simple online features.

            And for that matter what of the people that would like to use the console as a blu-ray player or home entertainment system (you know, the direction in which Microsoft has been pushing for with recent updates on 360). Maybe i’m wrong and they’ll provide minor functionality offline, but as it stands, it’s kind of ridiculous to think at certain times and for some people these options may just get thrown out the window also because of ONE selfish design choice. Not everyone uses net features on their blu-ray players etc. I sure as hell don’t, but then i’m one of those people that don’t use consoles for movies (I know people that do though).

            Honestly, whether people like to point out whether or not this is being blown out of proportion, it’s pretty much a fact that it in no way benefits people and only stands to be more of a hindrance for the sake of Microsoft protecting their own interests, and IMO that’s more than enough reason for people to be unhappy with that concept. Personally I find it a bit silly to defend the idea of having a “choice” taken away, particularly when at the end of the day whether it immediately affects certain people or not – it’s still POTENTIALLY taking away YOUR options and is of NO benefit to you.

            Reply
         3. 

            login

            April 7, 2013 at 2:07 pm

            You’re one of those annoying guys who you tell: “you sound like a Microsoft fanboy” and they respond with a cop out like; “No, i’m just telling the truth.”

            Word of advice, when you’re arguing AGAINST freedom, it’s usually the wrong point of view. I’ll give you a few minutes to work that out for yourself.

            Reply
            1. 

               Asylum

               April 9, 2013 at 2:01 pm

               “…when you’re arguing AGAINST freedom, it’s usually the wrong point of view.”

               this.

               Though some clarity is needed, this.

   4. 

      blood

      April 6, 2013 at 12:42 pm

      Yea I “totally agree”, those people in the military who won’t be able to play console games in the future should harden up.

      You are so right sir.

      Reply
      1. 

         Master T

         April 6, 2013 at 1:45 pm

         I was in the ADF and served overseas. We had access to internet on nights / days off. What are you on about?

         Reply
         1. 

            blood

            April 6, 2013 at 9:35 pm

            Your vast experience has enlightened me. I have since killed the fortune teller that told me such lies and while doing so she kept screaming….there’s a possibility…there’s a possibility…

            Reply
         2. 

            Joust

            April 7, 2013 at 2:08 pm

            I really wish you didn’t play to stereotype…

            Reply
   5. 

      twistoffate619

      April 6, 2013 at 2:31 pm

      Just because the nets been available for a while, it doesn’t mean we have to have this stupid crap imposed on us. With this upcoming generation of consoles we are still not in a world where internet is “everywhere’. It’s GETTING there, but it’s a simple fact that the world is not ready yet for that crap to be forced onto us. I mean even with an argument over many appliances like phones having internet access – that’s fine for them because they have that mobile internet access crap as well as some public places providing that coverage also – yet that hardly benefits someone with a console.

      With that in mind and despite the fact that many homes do indeed have the net – it’s still not like the overall abundance of PC’s in households – i’m no researcher nor expert, but it’s logical to think there’d be more computers in households than stable net access. Considering the added expenses for any decent plans on top of everyday expenses (as well as general ignorance amongst some parents in regards to the net vs their kids having a console), it’s not hard to believe that there’s all kinds of situations in which this could cause issues (granted people would say “good” in regards to kids not having access, but that would include the kids that have nothing to do with Halo or CoD – and it’s hardly fair to impose a restriction when we all never had such stupid restrictions in our 16-bit days barring us from playing).

      I don’t live in a rural area nor do I have issues say 95% of time in regards to internet. However, just because I CAN remain connected, it doesn’t mean that I should be FORCED to do so. There’s already enough incentives to “be” online (communication, online features in general, updating your profile on xbox.com/achievements, updates, playing YOUR purchased games on a friends console etc). Clearly you’re getting far more by being online, but on the other hand people DON’T miss out when there’s no net or forced into positions where they are (e.g. taking a console to a friends house)

      Forcing online on people however would just be purely in the best interests of Microsoft and nothing more. If I have a choice between a console that OFFERS me nice features and incentives without it spitting in my face, while the other (based on consistent rumours) FORCES “innovation” down my throat that even so much as POTENTIALLY has a negative impact on my gaming experience – well the choice is rather obvious there…

      Reply
8. 

   n0neoftheab0ve

   April 6, 2013 at 12:01 pm

   The way I see it as an existing Xbox customer (I don’t own a PS3 or a Wii)

   1) Always online is a bad thing and would’ve seen me without a functioning console for several notable periods in the last few years

   2) Right now to get your Xbox to talk to your modem you need to understand port forwarding, or DMZ or some other technical nonsense, current ‘always-online’ devices like say, the iPad (which still works offline) just talk to your router and frigging work properly without fuss. Microsoft will have to improve the architecture of their box a whole lot to justify a required online connection.

   3) Anti-used DRM is frankly a peverse outcome for the industry. I remember last year my brother and his kids were visiting from Canberra, my nephew bought a game at the local EB and played it on my machine for a few days before they went home. Under the twisted future hoped for by publishers, that game would now be locked to my console as a one-time-use product. It will singlehandedly kill the games retail industry the same way it killed retail for PC games.

   4) I have 30 XBLA games on my console, if they are not playable on the new machine then I will have no incentive to carry on with Xbox in the next generation, I may as well see what the competition has to offer.

   Reply
9. 

   ash

   April 6, 2013 at 12:19 pm

   I live in a country town. My power goes out from time to time. My internet goes out much more frequently. I will buy a PS4 next gen rather than Xbox if these rumours are true. MS might not care because I’m only one customer. Ohwell, PS4 seems nice anyway – I like the suspend/ resume function, handy for me when babies might start crying at any time etc.

   Reply
   1. 

      n0neoftheab0ve

      April 6, 2013 at 1:40 pm

      Yeah I wish I had that now, I’d be more inclined to play something like say, Mass Effect if you could suspend it wherever you are not relying on checkpoints

      Reply
      1. 

         ash

         April 6, 2013 at 1:47 pm

         if you could suspend it wherever you are not relying on checkpoints

         So much this! Applies to so many games! Such a simple thing but will make a world of difference to some.

         Reply
   2. 

      edes01

      April 8, 2013 at 11:13 am

      I’ve got family who are in the same predicament in Western NSW.
      Saying their internet service is unstable at times is being nice.
      Always online simply would not work for them; at this stage they’re also talking PS4.

      Reply
10. 

    john smith

    April 6, 2013 at 12:24 pm

    What about people who don’t even have the internet (believe it or not) and have an xbox to play fifa offline

    Reply
11. 

    mendoza

    April 6, 2013 at 2:42 pm

    People need to calm down and stop jumping to conclusions. I imagine certain features may be locked out if the console in not connected to the internet (just like the current xbox and ps3,) but I doubt you won’t be able to play any games without an internet connection. At the moment I need to connect to the internet to play DLC that was originally downloaded an another xbox. Big deal. I’m sure most of you are using your consoles mainly for online games anyway.

    Reply
12. 

    nef_d

    April 6, 2013 at 3:29 pm

    the vacuum cleaner analogy was my favorite. yes, vacuum cleaners need electricity to work (so does an xbox). We get that, it’s NEEDED to function but if the manufacturer suddenly said, “ok our new range will require that you also have constant access to the internet” everyone would be “why does our vacuum cleaner NEED the internet to work? the old one worked fine without it.” Same for the NextBox.

    Reply
13. 

    sweating-bullets

    April 6, 2013 at 6:02 pm

    Hopefully this backlash will make Microsoft rethink the whole online-only if that is the direction they will take for their next console.

    Reply
14. 

    allanon10101

    April 6, 2013 at 6:29 pm

    When I moved house, the power was connected the same day. It took 3 weeks for the internet company to connect. Since it has connected in january, we’ve had at least 3 days with absolutely no internet, router problems, connection issues, maintenance faults, etc. We’ve had power 24/7. Comparing the internet to electricity is completely off the mark, and just demonstrates his ignorance of how real-life situations may end up interfering with a concept that looks good on paper (see: communism)

    Reply
15. 

    Styff

    April 6, 2013 at 6:58 pm

    I don’t have a permanent ADSL connection to my house. I live in a new house in a new subdivision, I was one of the first to buy here and the rest of the suburb is being connected to the NBN as we speak (but I’m not). The exchange my line comes from is an old exchange that has not kept pace with the surrounding developments and as a result only has a Telstra DSLAM which means I cannot get a naked ADSL line.

    No other company is interested in putting in a DSLAM as the NBN is being installed (my house however is not expected to receive this until after 2017).

    So, I have a Kogan SIM with a 6GB data limit on my phone and I tether my PC or my Surface whenever I need net access.

    I cannot use an “Always on” XBox.

    I have 2 Xbox’s, 3 Windows Phones, 2 Windows PCs, 1 Windows Laptop and a Surface – so you could call me a Microsoft fan, but I will not buy the new XBox if it requires an always-on connection.

    Reply
16. 

    germinalconsequence

    April 7, 2013 at 12:27 am

    As a note for those saying that the “Always Online” requirement shouldn’t be a problem for anyone in this day and age. You should probably read up about the incident that occurred recently where the entirety of the UK’s internet was brought to an almost standstill because of malware that overloaded the internet enough to flood the Tier 1 IX. It was a configuration issue, but it also meant you either had very slow connections or none at all.

    You may also want to read about when Egypt turned off the internet connection to the outside world as well. Then there’s the problems that happened when a particular provider for traffic routing accidentally applied the filter for local traffic to international traffic, meaning people outside of a country were blocked out of sites because of that country’s internet policies. It’s also probably worth reading up on the times when America has toyed with the idea of an “off” switch for all external traffic in case of a cyber attack. Oh, and then there’s those times when a backhoe driver accidentally cuts Optus’ main cable, crippling the internet for most of Queensland…

    Long story short, the internet is an incredibly complex thing with many moving parts, the failure of which may not always affect you, but just always be aware that your internet connection is not a thing that can be guaranteed.

    Reply
17. 

    joe

    April 7, 2013 at 1:27 am

    my first xbox that i got 1 month ago wouldnt work wth my router i had to look it up on line, forward ports, down load an update with my pc, just to get it going, then wtf if i bump it, it scratches the lazer and disk. Fair call it does have a sticker saying not to move it when a disk is in it but i had a diskman 10 years ago i could go running with i have had a ps1, ps2 and ps3 that have never done anything like this, anyway took it back got a new ps3 no problem at all thats not fanboy talk thats just how it is. so how can i trust them again. also not to mension the red ring.

    ms has to look at what they do well and thats make windows 7. 8s just junk. if helo and gears of war came out on pc and or ps3 no one would have got an xbox.

    ive read report that they have looked into selling the xbox brand because they dont make money off it, it just cost so much to run.

    servers are not cheap even if they are in a cloud format.

    and here is my thing the new xbox if it does always need internet will probley need an xbox sub as well are you willing to pay to have something you can only ever use if you have an internet conection if the games stream over the connection i may be keen but then my shity 40 gigs a month wont last and why should my isp have to support them the cost vs reward is way to low

    ah … this it a rant sorry just a bunch of ideas

    Reply
18. 

    josephthewhite

    April 7, 2013 at 1:29 am

    my first xbox that i got 1 month ago wouldnt work wth my router i had to look it up on line, forward ports, down load an update with my pc, just to get it going, then wtf if i bump it, it scratches the lazer and disk. Fair call it does have a sticker saying not to move it when a disk is in it but i had a diskman 10 years ago i could go running with i have had a ps1, ps2 and ps3 that have never done anything like this, anyway took it back got a new ps3 no problem at all thats not fanboy talk thats just how it is. so how can i trust them again. also not to mension the red ring.

    ms has to look at what they do well and thats make windows 7. 8s just junk. if helo and gears of war came out on pc and or ps3 no one would have got an xbox.

    ive read report that they have looked into selling the xbox brand because they dont make money off it, it just cost so much to run.

    servers are not cheap even if they are in a cloud format.

    and here is my thing the new xbox if it does always need internet will probley need an xbox sub as well are you willing to pay to have something you can only ever use if you have an internet conection if the games stream over the connection i may be keen but then my shity 40 gigs a month wont last and why should my isp have to support them the cost vs reward is way to low

    ah … this it a rant sorry just a bunch of ideas

    Reply
19. 

    nef_d

    April 8, 2013 at 12:47 am

    My my nerd rage is an amazing sight to behold 🙂
    ok so now that everyone has calmed down, lets pretend that Adam was indeed “trolling” his friend. If you go back and reread his tweets (in order) it really does come across as someone busting balls. Ok, i get that ppl are on edge about this always-on thing but really he has no say in the direction MS will take with this so its a bit unfair to dump it all on him. Plus it is his personal twitter account. Pretty sure he can say what he likes. And its not like anyone was really paying attention to him in the first place, he only has about 300 followers. Why shouldn’t he feel like saying stupid shit every now and then?
    maybe he was so blasé about it is because its such a terrible idea no one would ever take him seriously…..right?

    Reply
20. 

    BigPurplePlums

    April 8, 2013 at 11:48 am

    Pft, always online? First world problems!

    Move to the 3rd world, I hear they have free wifi in most places.

    Reply
21. 

    hyp3rstrike

    April 9, 2013 at 8:49 am

    As someone who works for an Internet provider, always-on consoles are in my opinion, is a VERY bad thing.

    Especially when the user has a fault on their Internet service that prevents them from getting online — and its going to be even worse that they can’t play the console that they’ve forked money out for, because they’re waiting for their service issues to be resolved.

    Reply