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Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo joined forces to create a united machine that would please everyone?
It would put an end to the console wars, and everybody would live happily ever after....
> In disagreement, Microsoft have the money to buy Sony if they wanted
> to.
Microsoft certainly do have enough money to buy out sony, but a few problems arise from this arguement.
1. Microsoft wouldn't only have the PS2 to sell, but also every electronic piece of equipment the company makes, meaning more work for Bill to get in the profits.
2. From what I've read it cost half a million dollars for MS to market their console, plus there are the thousands of x-box's that have been made some of which haven't been sold. Not to mention the recent price drop, and added 'free two games and controller' for exisiting owners of the console. Microsoft don't plan to break even for a couple of years yet, meaning profits are already down. Buying out another company would put an ever greater loss on profits
3. Would sony sell? Nintendo and sega where offered to be bought out by MS, but refused. I think the same would happen with sony.
I think its great having three consoles on the market, it gives us choice and variaty. I think games developers would get incredibly lazy if there where only one console on the market, with no competition there would be no reason to make more innovative games to out do each other.
As for the single universal format for the games themselves this will never happen, as it would make piracy too easy althought it seems that every console seems to have a modchip or fix released for it on the web somewhere. The Xbox mods Xtender and Enigma are due out soon, will be interestign to see if xbox sales go up when people start chipping them like they did with ps2, damn chippin' fools lets see if they can fly withouta plane.
Windows really is a sorry excuse for an OS,
> it's easily the worst in commerical production at the moment
The least reliable, yes. The least secure, yes. Worst in a host of other features too, perhaps. However, in an OS for the mass market the single most important feature is that it is absolutely as user friendly as possible. In this respect, Windows pulls itself back up.
> LOL, but it would sure save some of us some money!
If there was only one console dominating the market, believe me when i say it would NOT save you money.
(the games would probably be £50+ at least!)
So in that context Sony already have a monopoly in the console market.
Monopolies are the single worst thing that can happen to an industry. Look at operating systems, Windows really is a sorry excuse for an OS, it's easily the worst in commerical production at the moment, yet it's used by 75% of computer throughout the world! MS made a monopoly and destroyed the market. The same would happen with this:
One console, so there's no competition. Therefore, there's no drive to make the console better than the rest, because it's the only one, and therefore the console becomes stale. Can you not see this?
I know it is only a fantasy-based dream, but wouldn't it be the best move for gamers?
I don't think there is any way Microsoft can really hope to beat Sony in terms of market share. Sony are too close to monopoly status.
> VenomByte wrote:
> If this doesn't happen, it's likely that Sony will totally
> monopolise
> the games market, and force other competitors out of the field. It's
> hard to predict what would happen after that...
>
> Please tell me how Sony would monopolise the field? MS have the money
> to buy sony 5 times at least.
Because sony wouldn't sell as Nintendo didn't.