Is Microsoft headed toward a virtual world? (Microsoft's "Home"?)

Austin-American Stateman reports from the Silicon Valley (San Jose, California):

At the Virtual Worlds Conference and Expo in the Silicon Valley, Daniel
"By next year, you'll probably know more about why I'm up here," Schiappa, general manager of strategy for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division, hinted that Microsoft could launch its own entry into into the virtual realm of "Second Life" or "Ultima Online" in one year. Schiappa suggested that Microsoft's virtual world would likely involve its Virtual Earth 3D service (pictured) and span across its PC, Xbox and mobile platforms...
Schiappa told attendees at the conference. "If a year from now we don't have anything, then we probably won't have anything," he added.

[Notes: Austin360.com/Statesman is the online site for the Austin American-Statesman daily newspaper in Austin, Texas; the screenshots were taken from Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D.]

[Zhuk]

it's more than likely something that we will see from Microsoft down the track as it would be excellent for them to not only counter home on the console front but actually become the market leader in virtual worlds (non-mmorpg) because of their dominance on the PC platform as well.

Also consider that they did recently acquire an in game advertising company for a few billion earlier this year so this would be a logical step in expanding that business and promoting growth in its game advertising business.

[nasim]

EU has fallen . JAPAN fell long time ago.

BY the time HOME hits ps3 would be around 300$ . forget competition and other trash.

@anega montoya --well said.

crush SONY despite being a lillliput. You seen now how SONY has crushed MS in eu with the price cut. Next year MGS 4 ,KZ2,FF13 would hit the scene.

even with a 399$ ps3 SONY might win NA not to even think about EU /JAPAN where PS3 is already murdering x360

[BrianC6234]

Nobody else has thought of virtual worlds on a gaming console. Microsoft better patent this idea quick before Sony copies them.

[lonestarmt]

if by brilliant you mean they never do anything original then copy anything thats successful then yea. Sony is the leader of change. How is vista working for you? almost everything new they copied from OSX and it doesn't work as well. Zune is a copy of the ipod. MSN? yeah they copeid that from yahoo and google. o expedia.com was made by bill gates, there were 100's of other sites like that. xbox is a copy from the playstation. They took rare from nintendo, they tried to take square. Now they see that people are pumped for home, so wouldn't shock me that they take that idea too. They took what made ps2 successful and they are trying to use the same exact plan with the 360, only not as good. They say you don't need HDMI, then later add it when they saw it worked good for the ps3. MAn even windows was not even original they stole that idea from another OS.Sony lowers their price, then they do.Love them or hate them..They copy everything and never take risks. Watch out soon their will be a little big planet rip off.

[Amsterdaam]

Everything you mentioned in your post would not have existed had Microsoft not built Windows, as buggy and crappy as it is.

[DrRage77]

"sony is the leader in change"...LMFAO oh really?? and just what change is that? a gaming console with a harddrive? sorry, that was a MICROSOFT innovation....motion sensitive controller? sorry, that was a NINTENDO innovation....

"xbox is a copy of playstation"...LMFAO oh really? and what is playstation? a copy of nintendo, a copy of neo geo, and copy of atari jaguar.....get over it, either point the fingers at every single company aside from atari, or shut up with these useless comments

[xhi4]

Brian.....at first, I thought you were being sarcastic. Then i read it again, and now....im just saddened.

[lonestarmt]

playstation didn't steel the idea of the HDD. Sigh, ok the ps2 came out before the xbox, and they had plans for the HDD add on for a while, came in japan, then came out over here, but sony realized that the support was weak for it then gave up on it, and then went with it on the ps3. The only really good thing for it was FF 11. Now I"m LMAO, the playstation wasn't a copy of anything. Yes it was a gaming console thats it. THe playstation was supposed to be a add on for nintendo, but they thought cds were not the wave of the future, and sony got the rights for it and made it. Thats why final fantasy left, because they wanted to make those pretty cgi's which they couldn't on the nintendo machines. Every company thought the cartridges were still the way to go and sony went on a limb on paid for the cd NEW format. That alone was going to be enough to beat nintendo. Now sony is trying to do the same thing with blu-ray realizing that to truly set it apart they needed and give it an extra edge. Nintendo saw this and said, hey we can't compete with that, we are going a different direction(smart move), M$ did what they alwasy do and came up with the same crap. Remember they said the HDD was needed and was the wave of the future then made fun of sony with the xbox one? then when the 360 came out they said it wasn't as important because sony ps2 kicked the living crap out of the xbox and they copied them, then when ps3 came out devs talked about how good it was for the HDD, then they came out with the elite with a HDD space that could make a difference?? Every company borrows or adds on, M$ is hands down the worst and most obvious and never try's anything new.....

[Ri0tSquad]

PS2 had a hard drive extension and the whole six axis thing was done way before Nintendo even thought of it. Look on youtube to see the video.

[Sez]

anyone remember the power glove from nintendo back in the days.when you punch in the air and the man on the screen would do it. sony didn't do motion first ninty did

[WhEeLz]

Harddrive on a console is microsoft innovation? WRONG!! That was panasonics 3DO.... good try though

[drsfinest72]

and then again microsoft is trying their best on trying to be sony. anyways. goodluck microsoft with this as playstation home would dominate your "second life".

[FordGTGuy]

Microsoft trying to be Sony now thats funny.

[ktchong]

Just so you guys know, this will be based on the Virtual Earth 3D engine, and Microsoft has been working on the engine since even before Sony announced Home. It's been in work for years, and it seems to be in perpetuate beta. (Maybe that's why Microsoft said Sony underestimated the work involved in making Home... because Microsoft has been working on the same thing for much longer, and they know it's hard.)

Virtual Earth 3D is basically a replica of the entire planet Earth in a virtual world - in great details. So Microsoft is already halfway there... now all it needs is to add in the Avatars.

[Mr VideoGames]

They could easily Release this on XBOX LIVE and Crush HOME with a Instant, Like Round Peg said...Microsoft has been working on this for Years now.

and SONY's HOME is a mear Joke compared to this...so for all of you SONY Idiots that say all this Stuff about how HOME is much better and free watch out cause there is a Reason it's Free.

SONY has FU**ed up once again by thinkng they could COPY Microsoft...AGAIN

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

"SONY has FU**ed up once again by thinkng they could COPY Microsoft...AGAIN"

i`m pretty sure MS likes copying SONY.

***Sony was in the console biz 1st
***MS has tried to buy any game that was popular on ps2
***the 1st XBOX had huge controller so they made them smaller(like sonys)
***the XBOX360 controller is a copy of the DUALSHOCK2
***MS making JRPGs
***adding a HighDEF movie player add on
***adding a HDMI port
***trying to make games in 1080p
***adding a bigger HDD
***having a VISION CAM
***adding a WIFI as a add on
***FORZA trying to be GT
***and almost everything else MS has done beside XBL

@the roung PEG

Virtual WORLD 3d will NOT be on 360.

@paradiselost

sorry.

***having HDD in ALL ps3s.

is that better?

[ParaDise_LosT]

But.....wasn't putting HDD in consoles....
Microsofts....Idea?......

[Sez]

last i remember all xbox consoles started with HDD in them. when ps2 was still using memory cards.and last i checked second life and sims online did the virtual world before sony. and didn't ninty start the motion sensing controller before sony us the sixixs.isn't sony trying the mimic some features that are used in live.

[WhEeLz]

For the last time Putting a harddrive on a console is not microsoft's idea.....it was panasonics that came out with the "3DO"

[ParaDise_LosT]

does that thing look ridiculously huge... o_o
Ohhh and TRP...
I didn't know that :o
Thanks for the info...

[PimpHandHappy]

but making it work is really the test. I have told all my gamer friends that i think Home is pipe dream. I love the idea of having 3D trophys and all but making it work with all the games like Sony wants is really a HUGE idea

maybe the new 720xbox will try and make it happen. By then they will have had time to pick apart what Home is and is doing.

IMO i dont see Home working how I WOULD LIKE IT but maybe they will. I want to make the MEtalHead Socom lounge and launch with my clan from this room

I hope MS does try it. Just one more thing that someone else did the thinking for them on and more thing they can try and make money off.

[MikeMichaels]

That i've had on my HDD for months in beta form and it works fine. I don't know why they don't release it...no major bugs that i could detect other than the Left and Right on the stereo need to be swapped.

Right now when you're standing around and there's a TV near by playing a trailer or something on your left side, the sounds come out of the right speaker. Weird LOL

Other than that the voice chat works great with proximity sound, the arcade works well along with the bowling alleys, pool table etc, as do home spaces.

I also love the new Home Square (that they demoed at E3) complete with chess and checkers tables set up in the park.

[PS360WII]

while cool it has to take an enormous amount of harddrive space. I see it viable on the PC. I suppose though it would get everyone to buy the horrible overpriced 120 hdd for 360.

[pwnsause]

funny how you xbots get excited about virtual avatars after you talked trash on how this isnt going to work for sony, or that theres no point. well, ignorance is bliss...

[gw4k]

Uneducated post!

[Synex]

Um, excuse me, but what he said is absolutely true. I remember xbots saying that they thought the idea of Home was "gay", and now since there is a possiblity of something like it to be on the xbox they like it. Also, your post was very educational; thank you for the insight.

[Amsterdaam]

I don't think it will work on the PS3, and I don't want it on my 360 either. I like going through a quick, concise menu to get to what I need. I don't feel like walking a little avatar to the movie theatre to watch a film or go to an arcade to play a game. I just want to scroll down to "Play Game" and play.

Soooooo... what was your argument again?

[PopEmUp]

Man you need to get out there since you only want to play game, these people want to explorer in the world of tech and next gen stuff, by the way you don't like going to the movie, the arcade man I think you stuck at home most of your times probably that a bit sad, hey wait a minutes ur user name say Amsterdam I mean if has that name you probably love Amsterdam or do you live there cause man I always go there (Rotterdam) every years For Armin Van Buuren Show he the best man if you Love Trance (if you came to his 2006 show it was the best man) that is, I think you should go out and party a bit more and you would love it, I live in Germany but love Holland and England

By the way cheer you mate

[Sylo]

"Virtual Worlds are lame."
"We don't need rumble."

Hopefully you're noticing now that everyone on this site is full of crap. People on here will downplay anything the "other" console has if its good, just because they don't have it.

If Home was on the 360, all the ms fans would be happy, and the sony fans would say it was overrated.

[Amsterdaam]

I think you misunderstood me. I LOVE going out, go out almost every night, I just don't want to do it on my video game console. I like to actually go out and actually do things, not "virtually" do things.

cheers to you as well.

[PStriple703]

it's not gonna be free, keep stealing money microsoft

[gw4k]

Another uneducated post!

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

"I say GO MICROSOFT!"

thats a PRETTY EDUCATED POST!

[ParaDise_LosT]

"I say GO MICROSOFT!"
HE MUST BE THE ROUND PEG TOO!

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

LOL.

[gw4k]

I think this is a great idea! MS is really in the lead when it comes to user kindness and really has an online system like no other!

If MS can bring this out, you know that it would smack Sony big time! Everything MS brings to market has really been polished and very user friendly!

I say GO MICROSOFT!

[Synex]

No, it will be 10+ years before Microsoft releases it. That will be roughly 4 Xbox consoles from today. Also, Sony's Home seems to be more user friendly; it looks less complicated.

[BloodySinner]

<sarcasm> Yay, a virtual home! </sarcasm>

[Bad_Karma]

lol looks like Apple aint got nothing worth stealing at the moment then .

[goodganja]

I knew it. All Micro$oft does is watch Sony's every move and then try to figure out on creating a duplicate and call it their own. Admit it xbots, Micro$oft and you XBots who follow it are hanging on Sony's sack with a steel grappling hook.

PLAYSTATION 3 DEFINATELY HAS SOME GOOD THINGS UNDERWAY LIKE PHIL HARRISON SAID A WHILE BACK. REASON WHY THEY DONT REVEAL THEIR WHOLE AGENDA IS BECAUSE MICRO$HIT WILL DUPLICATE THEM IN THE MOST EXACT WAY.

P L A Y B 3 Y O N D

[nobizlikesnowbiz]

I'm startin to read your posts just for humor now. They get me weak because it's so obvious your trying to make Sony fans look bad.

[Amsterdaam]

All these fanbois on either side are a constant source of entertainment. The funniest part is, the companies don't even really like these types. You know, like this fella here, who probably calls Sony Tech Support to tell them they're doing a great job every morning. Think of it this way, do celebrities like meeting their #1 fans? Fxck no, they are fully aware that these people are completely psychotic.

Get a mind of your own and think for yourself. For Christ's sake, you're even spewing ADVERTISING slogans!

[fury]

no comment

[DrRage77]

yes, they better...just like sony better patent the whole integrated online gaming service, or using a harddrive inside of a gaming console...

[Sez]

good for MS. i like the idea of a virtual world. sounds good.MS is really trying to give the fans more.

@gamesR4fun
yes MS is after your money like sony and nintendo.but last i remembered. MS started the HDD in every xbox last gen while sony was using memory cards.they stole the motion sensing thing from ninty.they stole the idea of a virtual world from second life and the sims online. maybe if you sonyfan STFU and stop bashing MS and go out and buy some games for the pos3. maybe dev wouldn't be so scared to make game for sony without fear of flopping.

@popemup
what happen i proved sony copy more than anyone and you change the subject. now it's about live. whatever dude. go buy some games for your system. if you have no plan on ever getting a 360. why would it matter to you if they start thier own virtual world. scared it might be better

[gamesR4fun]

common m$ is only after your dough thats it thats all just like $ony and Nintend0
Has for this obviously trying to catch up with Sony by doing what they do best copying.

[PopEmUp]

Yeah that right M$ after your money on everything that it offer on x-box 360 that includes things from add on to xbl live, man talking about paying something that doesn't worth it I must say xbl over psn (psn is free by the way) Xbl live you pay something like Us$50 and man you still got add on it but people though paying something when it come to online stuff isn't it suppose to be adds free by the way PSN is free and it also adds free, unlike something call premium service online and paying for it every years and it still has adds on it, man I wonder how it do since M$ is making thing similar to SONY Home cause man imagine how much you have to pay for it just to get into that service and on the other hand SONY is providing solid service that they Called HOME is completely free no hidden cost unlike M$. Talking about taking money off people without they knowing it that is like some master thief there how skillful BILL GATE he must have mastered it since he has his day off or something man that is one 4 EYES PRICK RIGHT there

[Mr PS3]

Copy this Microsuka's

[AnalFace]

Yer and how much would MS charge for this, $100 A year.... lol no thankyou.

[mirroredderorrim]

Good luck against WoW and Second Life. Microsoft will have their heads served to them. You have Starcraft II coming, and when that happens a bunch of online games are going to lose their userbase to it, lol!

Not so much second life, though. It's a social interaction more than it is a game.

[toughNAME]

Even if Microsoft does eventually implement a Virtual World on to xbox LIVE..

I would still consider it incredibly...I have to stress this...INCREDIBLY lame

I have no interest in interior design or fashion

-----

As good as LIVE is, it still has its problems...I'd rather MS focus on those (i.e. clan support, better MSN service, laggy dashboard while playing games)

[zonetrooper5]

"if by brilliant you mean they never do anything original then copy anything thats successful then yea. Sony is the leader of change. How is vista working for you? almost everything new they copied from OSX and it doesn't work as well. Zune is a copy of the ipod. MSN? yeah they copeid that from yahoo and google. o expedia.com was made by bill gates, there were 100's of other sites like that. xbox is a copy from the playstation. They took rare from nintendo, they tried to take square. Now they see that people are pumped for home, so wouldn't shock me that they take that idea too. They took what made ps2 successful and they are trying to use the same exact plan with the 360, only not as good. They say you don't need HDMI, then later add it when they saw it worked good for the ps3. MAn even windows was not even original they stole that idea from another OS.Sony lowers their price, then they do.Love them or hate them..They copy everything and never take risks. Watch out soon their will be a little big planet rip off."

Lol, every company copies each other idiot and Apple would of never been as successful or rich as they are now with out the Ipod winning, when the Ipod first came out, it was crappy, many better MP3 players out on the market. The fact is, Creative kick the crap out of Ipod's in pricing, sound and control.

Home is not original btw and other companies have done it before. Windows while buggy is good enough for me. PC games have also had mods and user created content for ages compared to LBP. HDMI is nothing new as well so don't give me that crap and the Zune, Ipod etc copied other MP3 players before.

Sorry about your post is full of crap, stupid sony fanboy as usual. =/

[Nameless]

How surprising is it that The Sony Droids are ragging on Microsoft about this when the PC did Virtual Worlds long before Sony. STFU you stupid Sony Droids. Sony is not original with Virtual Worlds not at all. So please STFU. If anything one can say Fony stole the idea from all of the PC Virtual Worlds just like you Sony Morons are saying MS is stealing from Fony. Just STFU Sony Droids.

[Lionsguard]

Sony DROIDS will never become the new word so yea...drop it, just makes you sound like 45 year old virgin living in your parents basement with starwars posters from ground to ceiling. Secondly Sony was the first to bring it onto a CONSOLE. So why was Halo 3 so original?? WARRRTHOGG!! ZOMG!! IT'S TE MOST ORIGINAL TIHNG EVER!! it's a damn jeep with a machine gun on the back Halo copied terrorists. ZOMG FORGE!!! it's a gimped map editor, copied from PC games that's been doing it for years but BETTER, oh? but it's the first on a console you say? hmmm..you don't say...I bet you're just another fanboy trying to cover his ass because you ragged on HOME like an envious child with no lollipop.

[nosmok]

Anyone remember VRML world. Geocities and many others had vrml world many years ago on the pc. I remember VRML based mud.. So no.. Sony nor microsoft have been innovators here. Competition is better for us in the long run... else we just except what shovelware they shift to us.
I just hope Micro$oft purchase a good enough 3rd party company to pull this off as a decent competitor. maybe even tie it in with the new Windows Messenger Client.
They both fight... we win.
Side note.. Im sure you know Microsoft is now planning to bring out a new wifi add on which is 802.11n.. hence the reason for it being external to the xbox thus making the networking on the ps3 looking slow. They have a plan you know.

[razer]

Everyone pulls out their pitchforks and starts accusing MS of copying Home. Maybe we should wait to see what exactly this is. It may be NOTHING like Home and all you lamers stomping your feet about MS never has an original idea will look like fools (more than you already do).

Just look at "trophies" a rip-off of Achievements and gamercards on the PS3 and you will see that MS has it's ideas copied as well.

[BIadestarX]

Here is why Sony fanboys are nervous about this. Because no one in the game industry have the platform to make this happen but Microsoft.
Only google can compete with Microsoft on this department.
It would be interesting to see if Microsoft comes up with a way to make a virtual world using all the data from their virtual map database. Sony's Home will be so insignificantly small compared Microsoft's it would be insulting to talk about it.

Sony fanboy, "ohh look... I can go to the theatre...and my home"...

Xbox gamer, "ohh yeah? Look I can go anywhere in the planet! and... look! it's my real home!"

[Kenshin_BATT0USAI]

Problem is , if it is a whole planet. What are the chances of you seeing another gamer? Earth isn't that small. Cept if its planned.

[SebL]

When Sony announced Home, all the Xbox fanboys were like "WTF? Who wants that crap? I bought my console to play games on". Now they're potentially being offered something similar and they're all like "Whoa! This is awesome dude! Yay, what a great idea!". You xbots are all so sad.

[ParaDise_LosT]

"When Sony announced Home, all the Xbox fanboys were like "WTF? Who wants that crap? I bought my console to play games on". Now they're potentially being offered something similar and they're all like "Whoa! This is awesome dude! Yay, what a great idea!". You xbots are all so sad."

Rumble?
Bioshock?(to a lesser extent)

Everybody does it, Don't think Your a saint for figuring out and telling people
Because thats something everybody knows and does...

[Nameless]

So Xbot is the new word & Sony Droid isnt ? It works both ways & not one kydrice & you do know that it is just as easy to what you did with Microsoft with Sony right. You are just as immature if not even more then you think I am. Good job there.

[Ahhhh]

@Nasim - You.. are.. facking.. retarded.. go.. away..
@Anego Montoya - Okay, Now list everything Sony copied off every other platform to date. OH NO!! They copied the idea of games *GASP* from the other previous game systems.. oh wait.. nvm.. dumbass.

[DaTrooF]

hope they do something similar to what sony is doing:use advertisements to keep it free.
i love how each comapny is pushing each other to evolve!

"If a year from now we don’t have anything, then we probably won’t have anything," he added.

maybe thats hint for when this xbox 3d place is going to be announced/released.

btw,just out of curiousity,wasn't M$ critisizing HOME?
just wondering.
i thought i read it somewhere.
maybe i'm wrong.

[Nameless]

Sony also critized Microsoft about how they did Backwards Compatibility & look at how that turned out

[joydestroy]

ooo nice. sounds like a great idea.

[JasonPC360PS3Wii]

To counter Home "IF" Home takes off (IF) they are probably taking a wait and see approach and I'm sure it will be a better version of the Home/Sims ripoff

[drsfinest72]

1- the ps2 had the HDD as a seperate assesories before the xbox came out

2- microsoft started off with pc games and building OS for pc

3-sony is like the dictator of videogames. we own and other companies bow down to us and take our ideas to go up against sony (your dictator). microsoft is trying to over throw sony our the market. but it wont happen

4-playstation home is a virtual worlld. yes its free. but remember sony would be making money off of this because they planning on using it for advertising stuff for example coca-cola can advertise within the game with a bilboard or something therefore sony geting money from coca cola to ad.

5- all of sony ideas goes straight to xbox because xbox swears they as good as sony.

[Sez]

1) the ps2 HDD didn't come out before the xbox system. i think you need to do your research alittle better.the xbox came out atleast a year after ps2.
2)i give you that one.
3)sony dictator(more dic*takers)they only won last gen because like MS this gen had a year head start.ps1 didn't really have any competition. sega was on the way out. and nintendo wanted to keep using cart.
4) as for sonys home being free.we will see.they say now it will be free. just like they said B/C will be supported . now it won't be. i know what you sonyfanboys will say. just keep your ps2. problem with that most people want to us one system to play their old games. i play all my B/C xbox games on my 360.i was happy to get rid of my xbox because it took up space.
5)please sony hasn't had an original idea of thier own since they started making walkman.every idea sony did was a copy of someone idea. all companies do it.so gt off MS is copying sony.sony has been copying people for years. by the way didn't sony try to revise the ps2 when the xbox came out to do most of the things xbox cam out from the gate with.(i think it was the psx or something like that)

[shanx24]

Sony's Home is a joke for anyone who's cared to explore it. Microsoft technology is nowhere near the sophistication that Google Earth has already garnered. While fanboys from XBOX and PS3 continue hilariously as they do on this site, Google will soon come out with a fantastic offering that won't require consoles (the number of consoles in circulations is a spittle compared to the number of PCs).

[wil4hire]

Bots.. I swear.

[teto83]

a.k.a. home knock off????

[Ahhhh]

Home is gay.. and this is probably going to be gay.. we have to wait and see what it offers.

@teto83 - Home a.k.a. The Sims knock off???? Shut up. Everybody copies erybody... It's nothing new.

[PopEmUp]

I think you gay and stupid, do you even know anythings about technology, home or anythings that involve with the virtual world is just another step to bring the future into reality so don't be stupid to comment like that, cause it like saying you have eggs on your face, so think about it and grab a rope and you know what to do cause you're pathetic

[AngryTypingGuy]

So what if MS rips off home. They all rip off each other. Sony copied the Wii to an extent with their controller. And isn't Sony going to rip off Microsoft's addicting Achievements?

If you were in charge of a company and you saw that a competitor offered something potentially profitable that you don't, what do you do? Get it for your own company, and hopefully improve upon it.

And this is all assuming that this will happen, which it may not.

[iceman2000]

cell can calclett 1000 tv et sem tiem
en 12tv att sem time full 1080p
de is risen home com du live in ps3
has1 cpu vide 7 slivs
xbox vil nver haw home
licke ps3
sibel cell is med for home