News - Microsoft readying Chinese 360 release
Posted by Justin Fassino at 02:49:23 PM EST on 1.16.2007.
Given the worldwide number of around 10 million Xbox 360 consoles sold worldwide at the end of 2006, it was only a matter of time before Microsoft took its white machine to the biggest potential market on the planet: China.
Reuters is reporting that it has gotten word that such a release will come sometime this year.
The 360 was launched in Hong Kong in November of 2005, but the laissez-faire environment of the region usually means that Hong Kong is held to different economic rules than the rest of the country.
The biggest competitor to the 360, however, is not going to be any fancy new next-gen machine. Instead, it will be going up against Sony's workhorse Playstation 2, which was released in China only 3 years ago.
According to the marketing firm Analysys, the main goal of the Chinese release for Microsoft is to jump start the Chinese software development industry. Microsoft feels the 360 can lead the way in popularizing console game development in the country with a population of 1.3 billion people.
Source: Reuters
Posted by Justin Fassino at 02:49:23 PM EST on 1.16.2007.
Given the worldwide number of around 10 million Xbox 360 consoles sold worldwide at the end of 2006, it was only a matter of time before Microsoft took its white machine to the biggest potential market on the planet: China.
Reuters is reporting that it has gotten word that such a release will come sometime this year.
The 360 was launched in Hong Kong in November of 2005, but the laissez-faire environment of the region usually means that Hong Kong is held to different economic rules than the rest of the country.
The biggest competitor to the 360, however, is not going to be any fancy new next-gen machine. Instead, it will be going up against Sony's workhorse Playstation 2, which was released in China only 3 years ago.
According to the marketing firm Analysys, the main goal of the Chinese release for Microsoft is to jump start the Chinese software development industry. Microsoft feels the 360 can lead the way in popularizing console game development in the country with a population of 1.3 billion people.
Source: Reuters
