Just minutes ago Microsoft announced how licensing will work with their next-gen console. After reading through their post on Xbox Wire, I wanted to examine every bit of that blog post and give my personal response to the policies. So, what does Microsoft have in store for us? Let’s dive into it!
Buy the way you want—disc or digital—on the same day: You’ll be able to buy disc-based games at traditional retailers or online through Xbox Live, on day of release. Discs will continue to be a great way to install your games quickly.
This is actually the smartest thing that Microsoft has done with Xbox One so far. We all figured it was coming, but you never know with Microsoft until they officially announce it. I am a big proponent on digital distribution, and offering every Xbox One game the ability to be downloaded from Xbox Live is a great step in the right direction. We’ve seen what happens with a platform switches to almost all digital with the PC.
Access your entire games library from any Xbox One—no discs required: After signing in and installing, you can play any of your games from any Xbox One because a digital copy of your game is stored on your console and in the cloud. So, for example, while you are logged in at your friend’s house, you can play your games.
Once again, a good move by Microsoft, but I want to know some more of the logistics. You will obviously have to download the game to your friend’s Xbox One when you are at his house, what happens when you leave? Does the Kinect at any person’s house recognize your face and will not authorize your friend to play the game while you’re not there? Or maybe if your friend is logged into your account (more on that later), maybe the two of can not play the same game at once? Will that game be forever installed on your friend’s hard drive, taking up space? I would like to know more of how this works.
Share access to your games with everyone inside your home: Your friends and family, your guests and acquaintances get unlimited access to all of your games. Anyone can play your games on your console–regardless of whether you are logged in or their relationship to you.
“Or their relationship to you?” What does that mean? Do all of your friends need to create an account to play on your Xbox One? Once again, does Kinect recognize family members? Will we need to show Kinect a driver’s license to play games?
Give your family access to your entire games library anytime, anywhere: Xbox One will enable new forms of access for families. Up to ten members of your family can log in and play from your shared games library on any Xbox One. Just like today, a family member can play your copy of Forza Motorsport at a friend’s house. Only now, they will see not just Forza, but all of your shared games. You can always play your games, and any one of your family members can be playing from your shared library at a given time.
So ten people will be able to use your Xbox Live account on any Xbox One. I am picturing a scenario of ten friends sharing one account and playing each others’ games. If that was the reasoning for this policy, good on you Microsoft. But I’m sure there will be many loopholes to jump through to get family access.
Trade-in and resell your disc-based games: Today, some gamers choose to sell their old disc-based games back for cash and credit. We designed Xbox One so game publishers can enable you to trade in your games at participating retailers. Microsoft does not charge a platform fee to retailers, publishers, or consumers for enabling transfer of these games
You will be able to trade in games for cash or credit, but only if the publisher of the game allows it. Could that be why EA dropped their Online Pass? Instead of the Online Pass, EA could just force everybody to buy new copies of their games. It is great that Microsoft is allowing you trade in games, but it is only at participating retailers. I have to imagine those small, local game stores will not be participating retailers. Also by only allowing specific retailers to participate in used game sales means there is some process to make a used game playable on other consoles.
Give your games to friends: Xbox One is designed so game publishers can enable you to give your disc-based games to your friends. There are no fees charged as part of these transfers. There are two requirements: you can only give them to people who have been on your friends list for at least 30 days and each game can only be given once.
I’m glad that you will be able to share games with friends, but now you won’t be able to just borrow games from anyone. This and the used game sales almost confirms that each disc will be printed with a special code that will be tied to Xbox Live accounts. How else would Xbox Live know you borrowed the same disc more than once? Initially I misread this policy. You will not be able to share games, you will only be able to give a friend a game, and once they puts it in their Xbox One, that game is tied to your friend’s account. This means you will be able to sell your games to friends, but your friend can not turn around and sell it on once they are finished with it. But remember, this is up to the publisher, so they have the ability to block you from giving your friends a game.
In our role as a game publisher, Microsoft Studios will enable you to give your games to friends or trade in your Xbox One games at participating retailers. Third party publishers may opt in or out of supporting game resale and may set up business terms or transfer fees with retailers. Microsoft does not receive any compensation as part of this. In addition, third party publishers can enable you to give games to friends. Loaning or renting games won’t be available at launch, but we are exploring the possibilities with our partners.
Here is where they confirm that third party publishers can opt out of allowing the resale of their games, and they also say publishers could charge gamers for trading in their games. Renting games will not be available at launch, which means GameFly and RedBox will not be able to support Xbox One. It will be interesting to see when you will be able to rent games for the Xbox One.
This model of games licensing is unprecedented for a console. It will be interesting to see how it unfolds in the real world once the Xbox One is released later this year.
