Xbox CEO Asha Sharma Details Project Helix Next Generation Console Hardware and Radical New Business Models to Address High Manufacturing Costs and Reaching Mass Audiences
The console gaming industry is set for a seismic shift as major publishers are paving the way for new hardware. However with escalating development and manufacturing costs this has led to warnings from Microsofts very top leadership. Xboxs CEO Asha Sharma has today detailed the financial challenges that confront the console industry and the very retail business model may no longer be viable for mass consumption.
According to Sharma, the current financial squeeze on consumer spending has caused a choke point on hardware and software sales. To increase diminishing audience metrics, the whole approach to hardware launch models must be rethought. Sharma confirmed the need for radical re structuring of hardware launch plans.
'We need to think about how the price of the new console will be formed, how we form different plans to attract more people. We need to think about partnership that would allow us to improve the distribution of the console. In addition, we need to think about what experience we are creating, as well as how to reach a new audience.'
A huge challenge that the platform holder faces is barrier to entry for the average consumer. With escalating costs for silicon and advanced memory architecture, the new generation of consoles may price out ordinary players. Sharma pointed out that, due to the cost of the physical hardware it will be necessary to re think how a consumer might purchase a console, and where they will receive it from.
'We have reached a point where it is difficult to imagine how a mass audience can afford to spend $1000s on next generation consoles. Therefore, I believe towards the end of the year we will begin to see completely different business models emerge that we did not even know existed.'
Alongside the re evaluation of finances for the new hardware, it appears that new manufacturing methods for its internal components are being looked at. Storage drives and high speed memory, remain among the highest cost factors for modern consoles. Sharma explained how future models will increasingly rely on the power of software and alternative storage arrangements to lower costs for physical units.
'We need to think about disks and memory for the future console. It will be necessary to apply new technologies to reduce the need for this. We need to give buyers different options for the amount of disk space. And we will need to introduce a new type of games that would fit on such devices, so there will be many innovative ideas.'
Microsoft have already confirmed their next generation hardware as Project Helix but no official details on specifications have yet been confirmed, although sources report the new console will house a custom AMD system on a chip and include proprietary upscaling tech through FSR Diamond to reduce the costs of manufacturing while still maximising performance.
