Xbox Business Update Podcast | Xbox Everywhere Direction Discussion

[Cyan]

I am not sure this is entirely true. I dont think majority of the pople buy windows beoxouse they can play games on it. It is importand factor for many of them but not the primary. Today you can play play games on linux and in some cases better than on windows, but imagine someone going into store and buying a pc or laptop without windows on it.
i think 99% of people dont have any clue how to use linux. And gaming on Mac is just joke. SteamOS didnt convience millions to switch to it.

How does Microsoft make its billions? Microsoft revenue breakdown 2024

Back in the 90’ Microsoft was only about Windows - the first OS that went on global scale usage, and it was the only usable option for a long time. But over time, when new operating sy...

techbehemoths.com

"However, in 2022 Microsoft revenue from Windows (both OEM and commercial) decreased as percentage from revenue. In the company's annual financial report, it is stated that Windows generated $24,76B in revenue in 2022 which is 12.48% from the total revenue. "

OEM is stil the biggest income source when it comes to windows so if the manufacturers will start ship laptops and pc with SteamOS preinstalled i dont think they need to start worry. The fact that this does not happend today is a clear indication that there is very little demand for that. This may change of cousre, but it would have to go beyond gaming and the shift in consumer preferences to abbandon what they know and jump into completly unkonw OS that the only think they know about is "hard".

good points. Windows is my preferred OS, and my worries stem from the adoption of SteamOS first as a gaming OS and, maybe, over time as a general use OS -which SteamOS can do perfectly-. This might start the erosion of Windows usage, slowly but steadily.

Gamers achieved many things through the use of the hardware. i.e. nVidia has been a gaming company from the very start, and their AI revolution started with the tensor cores for gaming; DLSS and stuff. Look where are they know.

 

[Charlietus]

good points. Windows is my preferred OS, and my worries stem from the adoption of SteamOS first as a gaming OS and, maybe, over time as a general use OS -which SteamOS can do perfectly-. This might start the erosion of Windows usage, slowly but steadily.

Gamers achieved many things through the use of the hardware. i.e. nVidia has been a gaming company from the very start, and their AI revolution started with the tensor cores for gaming; DLSS and stuff. Look where are they know.

Why would it worry you? Windows as the default and pretty much only choice on the market has been a reality for far too long. Bring on some competition.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

...their AI revolution started with the tensor cores for gaming; DLSS and stuff. Look where are they know.

nVidia introduced Tensor cores for non-gaming AI in their datacentre lines.

 

[Cappuccino]

but look at what happened to the Amiga compared to MS-DOS. Amiga was the best computer to play games, but people switched to MS-DOS massively 'cos it used Mode 13H -a VGA exclusive thing- and Doom couldn't run on the Amiga. Doom made MS-DOS hugely popular, and that led to Windows becoming even more popular.

Right but like what’s the modern day relevance here, what does SteamOS do that Windows doesn’t that’s a major threat?

The fact that this does not happend today is a clear indication that there is very little demand for that.

Well, SteamOS 3 literally cannot be installed on anything except a SteamDeck, so that’s probably why lol.

Everyone talking about SteamOS doing this or that is jumping the gun, it’s not a publicly released OS and Valve hasn’t announced any plans for it to be. People are taking their experiment with SteamOS 1 and 2 and extending it to 3 which Valve hasn’t actually done yet.

 

[Cyan]

Why would it worry you? Windows as the default and pretty much only choice on the market has been a reality for far too long. Bring on some competition.

What is the least complicated way to be able to get Steam and other types of stores inside an Xbox?

What is the way to be able to have the entire library of the world for PC, including what Sony itself publishes even if you don't have any type of deal with them?

Putting Windows in your device.

Do we know who can console-rize a Windows OS nowadays? Microsoft themselves.

And by doing that they can achieve all those things.

Xbox head Phil Spencer wants to see Epic Games Store, Steam, and other storefronts on consoles

Xbox head Phil Spencer wants to see Epic Games Store, Steam, and other storefronts on consoles

Microsoft might be looking into letting additional storefronts like the Epic Games Store or Steam on Xbox consoles, which is a strange idea.

www.tweaktown.com

 

[Cyan]

Right but like what’s the modern day relevance here, what does SteamOS do that Windows doesn’t that’s a major threat?

Valve and MS are now trying to do the same thing. imho.

Valve wants to continue growing with a business model that they have specifically based on selling PC games. So they need to do different things and extend the model of PC gaming beyond the PC itself.

Maybe that's the best future solution for the gaming industry.

Valve transformed an OS nobody would give a damn about into something that works really well to fit their purposes, and you can have productivity -desktop mode, which allows you to install GoG, Epic Store, itch.io etc, via the compatibility layer Valve included-.

Both Valve and MS are working on the liberalization of these ecosystems.

Build your own Steam Machine

SteamOS

store.steampowered.com

Microsoft are accustomed to distributing software which allows you to install stuff, yes, it's called Windows.

Microsoft has the expertise around trying to put their OS on any kid's/mother's/father's gadget that exists on the face of the earth.

They might lose the money that it's going to cost to generate the entire ecosystem, yeah, but MS are playing on a whole different level now.

They know that they have lost what is the TRADITIONAL war of the world of consoles.

MS needs to think outside the box.

 

[arandomguy]

Why would it worry you? Windows as the default and pretty much only choice on the market has been a reality for far too long. Bring on some competition.

The worry would be same as why Steam fans (or really anyone with a preferred platform) worry (well actually hate) any other companies trying to launch stores and platforms on the PC.

From a personal stand point on a practical level as someone who uses the PC for more than just gaming OS fragmentation would actually be inconvenient unlike what the game distribution and launcher complaints. Even though on a conceptual level I like the idea of competition, I can still see how it can also have drawbacks on a practical level.

 

[Cappuccino]

Build your own Steam Machine

This is not a modern thing, this is for the long abandoned Steam Machines and this iteration of SteamOS hasn't been updated for years.

 

[mr magoo]

...

MS needs to think outside the box.

I think this is the point and this is WHY they are doing all of this. I have listened to Jez Corden podcast who has a lot insider info about whats going on and he said there will be major info update soon (TM) about msft road map and this will explain whats going on. It will clarify the vision so to speak.
I am surprised that msft is not loosing ground in OS market more rapidly, i work in devops-sysops and for more than 10 years i havent used windows as my main OS. Recently i switched job working for government and we are forced to use windows and everybody hates that. Its normal that programmers and OPS people want mac/linux, almost all servers oses are based on linux, when i use device to watch movies i used either mac tablet or androind tablet, listening music on iphone or android, watching movies on TV with android os in. Seems like msft couldnt find a way to introduce windows spinoff on any of those devices and become irrelevenat player in those aspects.

Its amazing that they could introduce something like teams, great product with great features and still struggles so much with other offerings

 

[IQandHDR]

Recent numbers:

Microsoft Teams Statistics 2025: Revenue, Market Share, & Users

Explore Microsoft teams statistics for 2025. Get the latest data on its revenue, market share, users and more inside.

www.demandsage.com

Microsoft Teams has 320 million daily active users.

Slack Statistics (2025) – Revenue & Users Data

Explore latest Slack statistics, including projected 47.2 million users in 2025. Discover number of users, usage, & financial insights.

www.demandsage.com

Slack has 38.8 million daily active users

 

[see colon]

I am surprised that msft is not loosing ground in OS market more rapidly, i work in devops-sysops and for more than 10 years i havent used windows as my main OS.

Your experience is atypical of a "normal" computer user, though. Most people just want to browse the web, do a little word processing/spreadsheets and play some games. Windows dominant market share means that most developers for games and programs support it. This is exactly the position Phil was talking about, though inverted, when he said something like "there isn't a world that exists where we release only 10 out of 10 AAA exclusives and everybody sells their Playstation and buys an Xbox". The greatest games or programs ever could be released exclusively on FreeBSD and it wouldn't likely affect windows or FreeBSD's market share, because it isn't one program or game, it's the entirety of your library that plays a factor. And this is why SteamOS is probably the greatest threat to Windows gaming, because your library is included. Through, I do wonder if people understand that they are shunning Windows because they think Microsoft is trying to get them to subscribe to a billion services, when SteamOS is an OS purpose built for you to access a service. The OS is free, the games are mostly paid DLC. It's the free to play OS.

I think I might have just equated SteamOS in my mind with Roblox. They might be the same thing to me now.

 

[Cyan]

I think this is the point and this is WHY they are doing all of this. I have listened to Jez Corden podcast who has a lot insider info about whats going on and he said there will be major info update soon (TM) about msft road map and this will explain whats going on. It will clarify the vision so to speak.
I am surprised that msft is not loosing ground in OS market more rapidly, i work in devops-sysops and for more than 10 years i havent used windows as my main OS. Recently i switched job working for government and we are forced to use windows and everybody hates that. Its normal that programmers and OPS people want mac/linux, almost all servers oses are based on linux, when i use device to watch movies i used either mac tablet or androind tablet, listening music on iphone or android, watching movies on TV with android os in. Seems like msft couldnt find a way to introduce windows spinoff on any of those devices and become irrelevenat player in those aspects.

Its amazing that they could introduce something like teams, great product with great features and still struggles so much with other offerings

you are more of a rarity in that sense. Since you mentioned it, Android is controlled by Google with an iron hand, but they let people have millions of apps available, and companies can have their own stores, and it isn't hard to use at all.

 

[Cyan]

Mat Piscatella interview on Gamesradar.

Despite "a rocky couple of years," analyst reckons Xbox's console war is "actually looking pretty bright" - "If you look at the PlayStation sales chart, you see a lot of Microsoft on there"

Despite "a rocky couple of years," analyst reckons Xbox's console war is "actually looking pretty bright" - "If you look at the PlayStation sales chart, you see a lot of Microsoft on there"

"You look at their results in their earnings reports, and you go, okay, that looks pretty darn good"

www.gamesradar.com

"You look at their results in their earnings reports, and you go, okay, that looks pretty darn good"

For Piscatella, the key to Xbox's future is to embrace other platforms, rather than competing with them, and to ensure that even if console sales falter, as they have in recent years, they can still make up for that with sales of their games. "You look towards the future and some of the things they've talked about, expanding the reach of the Xbox brand well beyond the Xbox console is a key initiative and they're executing on that," he explains.

"You look at their results in their earnings reports, and you go, okay, that looks pretty darn good, even though they recognize that console sales themselves are lagging for them. You look at it that way and the future is actually looking pretty bright, although, yeah, it's been a rocky couple of years for sure."

With Xbox having invested so heavily in expanding Game Pass, to which subscriptions have long since begun to plateau, Piscatella believes that one of the service's most important aspects is as a marketing machine for Xbox titles, describing it as "having more of a broad approach where subscriptions are more a part of doing things like driving sales on other platforms and ecosystems."

He views Game Pass as an important part of Xbox's brand but believes that Xbox's move to a more balanced approach, as opposed to their previous focus on the service, is a smart one. "I think it has a really nice role to fill in a portfolio of products being offered to consumers. But perhaps the previous strategy of going all in on just that, course correcting from that seems to have been a good decision."

 

[Shifty Geezer]

you are more of a rarity in that sense. Since you mentioned it, Android is controlled by Google with an iron hand...

Except it being open source and alternatives like CyanogenMod/LineageOS existing, giving every handset owner the opportunity to install their own choice of compatible OS that'll run all their apps and services.

 

[cheapchips]

Its amazing that they could introduce something like teams, great product

Nothing you ever say ever again will have any credibility.

 

[Cyan]

Except it being open source and alternatives like CyanogenMod/LineageOS existing, giving every handset owner the opportunity to install their own choice of compatible OS that'll run all their apps and services.

why aren't those as popular as the original Android? Just curious.... I mean, Google manages Android with an iron hand in the sense that they give you lots of freedom but they are the keepers of the ecosystem.

Btw, the analogy I made was meant to explain that Valve and MS are pursuing a similar approach in their own way.

Windows is the best OS for gaming but given its shenanigans it's one of the most complex OSes for gaming as of now. Lots of things to work on -default resolutions on games suck, lots of firewall messages when launching a game, pc gamepass app can be somewhat clumsy, especially when launching a game for the first time, setting up more than 2 controllers (especially house brand ones) can be messy, games that need to install additional libraries, the occasional jump to the desktop, etc etc. But if the manage to fix that, the performance of Windows as an OS would be way better.

 

[Cappuccino]

Mat Piscatella interview on Gamesradar.

Despite "a rocky couple of years," analyst reckons Xbox's console war is "actually looking pretty bright" - "If you look at the PlayStation sales chart, you see a lot of Microsoft on there"

Despite "a rocky couple of years," analyst reckons Xbox's console war is "actually looking pretty bright" - "If you look at the PlayStation sales chart, you see a lot of Microsoft on there"

"You look at their results in their earnings reports, and you go, okay, that looks pretty darn good"

www.gamesradar.com

I think my issue with online amateur analysis of corporate success is everyone thinks because someone is losing or has low market share that means they're going to quit and exit the market. As long as Xbox makes money they probably won't change anything. In most normal industries there are a bunch of players without dominance of the entire market that are just fine being #2 or #3 or #10 as long as they can scale up and down and make money.

Same with AMD GPUs btw, low marketshare =/= nonviable from a business perspective.

Frankly I think MS would lose out if they abandoned hardware and instead tried to win over the PC market, considering PC gamers are famously resistant to using anything but Steam (I am guilty of this, I hate the Xbox launcher).

 

[see colon]

why aren't those as popular as the original Android? Just curious.... I mean, Google manages Android with an iron hand in the sense that they give you lots of freedom but they are the keepers of the ecosystem.

FireOS proves that you don't need the google ecosystem to make a viable Android device. Kindle Fire's might not have the installed base of iPads, but they certainly are a force in the android tablet market.

 

[rntongo]

I think this is the point and this is WHY they are doing all of this. I have listened to Jez Corden podcast who has a lot insider info about whats going on and he said there will be major info update soon (TM) about msft road map and this will explain whats going on. It will clarify the vision so to speak.
I am surprised that msft is not loosing ground in OS market more rapidly, i work in devops-sysops and for more than 10 years i havent used windows as my main OS. Recently i switched job working for government and we are forced to use windows and everybody hates that. Its normal that programmers and OPS people want mac/linux, almost all servers oses are based on linux, when i use device to watch movies i used either mac tablet or androind tablet, listening music on iphone or android, watching movies on TV with android os in. Seems like msft couldnt find a way to introduce windows spinoff on any of those devices and become irrelevenat player in those aspects.

Its amazing that they could introduce something like teams, great product with great features and still struggles so much with other offerings

I guess I'll be one of the few to understand you especially when you talk about how Mac/Linux is preferred. Had to use outlook and teams back in 2021 but only on company issued devices and outlook+teams was a pain to use, nasty experience. Couldnt tell if it was the devices or the software or both since work phone and laptop were non iOS/Mac devices as well as using a nasty Windows work laptop sucked. But the Android phone was a good modern Samsung phone so the issue must have been the software then. Most recent job we had Mac/iOS devices and honestly got an appreciation for Teams as well as Outlook which run flawlessly. I still would prefer working in a company that uses Google suite for emails but outlook is a well made product and Teams is a sold product as well. Much better today than in 2021 as well. MS can do a good job with all their tech. Valve with their Steam OS has a great foundation with Linux/Unix and will continue to compete favourably but as well I think MS will do a great job supporting the Windows ecosystem for gaming.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

why aren't those as popular as the original Android? Just curious....

Same reason Linux isn't as popular as Windows. You need to be a nerd to flash your shiny new phone with its official warranty and wipe it with an unsupported OS you have to manage yourself. Whereas the Android that comes as default works fine so there's no need to replace it.

I mean, Google manages Android with an iron hand in the sense that they give you lots of freedom but they are the keepers of the ecosystem.

Still not sure what you mean by this. I can side-load any app I want. I can use other stores. I can copy their OS and make my own version. That's not much of an iron fist; more a soft cat-grooming-mitten.