New Microsoft Xbox, Winner or Loser?

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) will release its new Xbox this week. The common wisdom is that, even if the console is more popular the Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation and Nintendo Wii, the the movement of gaming to smartphones will make a success impossible. Of course, as with all new products, the devil is in the details, and the details of the new Xbox may be good enough to keep it competitive in the new game world.

The Xbox is expected to have the minimum features any new product in the industry would have. Among these are broadband connections which support HD movie downloads and streaming, and multiplayer gaming that allows users to compete across the world.

The critical feature will be the extent to which the console supports free games which world on smartphones and tablets. And, whether the Xbox platform can be migrated to an owners portable devices without any fee. In a game world, where many new products are free, offering a lot of free features could be Microsoft’s path to a successful product.