Xbox CEO: Exclusives Needed While Balancing Platform Role
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said Microsoft will weigh exclusives on a title-by-title basis while balancing its platform role and its position as the world’s number two publisher.
Asha Sharma, who took over as Xbox CEO earlier this year, told an interviewer Microsoft must offer exclusive content while also serving as a platform and the industry’s second-largest publisher. She said the company will weigh exclusivity on a title-by-title basis.
Sharma noted rising costs for developers and publishers, saying RAM prices have increased roughly 50% since she became CEO. She described higher component costs as a factor that affects development and publishing across the industry.
On the question of exclusivity, Sharma framed the issue as a choice between two objectives: getting games to the largest possible audiences as a publisher and holding exclusive content to strengthen Xbox as a platform. She said the company is studying past industry cases and will evaluate each title individually.
“I think it’s a tough topic. Look, we’re the number two publisher in the world, and in order to be a great publisher, you must have your games reach large audiences to play. At the same time, we’re increasingly becoming a platform. In order to be a platform, you must have exclusive content and services. And so, we’re looking at that very closely. I think that we have to be very thoughtful about each title, on how we want to think about it, and learn from similar cases in the industry, and that’s what we’re doing.”
Sharma did not announce specific changes to release plans or name which upcoming titles will be exclusive. She said decisions will be handled case by case as the company reviews past examples and current market conditions.
Microsoft has spent nearly $100 billion acquiring multiformat publishers in recent years and continues to support some cross-platform releases. Several long-running Microsoft-owned series have appeared on other consoles. Industry watchers are paying attention to upcoming launches, including the next Gears of War entry, for indications of how Microsoft will apply its approach to exclusivity.
Sharma stated her goal is to make Xbox a leading gaming and entertainment company while balancing broad audience reach with platform differentiation.
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