Microsoft planning $99 Xbox 360 with subscription - Report

chikahiro94's cell phone contract comparison is very apt.

considering ive seen sales of the xbox 360 for 130, this makes no sense at all.

Why is everybody ripping on this so hard? It only ends up being $40 or so cheaper to buy it all separately and buy amazon subscription cards, but you are getting the convenience of not having to pay all the money up front. Some people might not have $400 spare to spend on a console, but over the course of 2 years they do have $15 a month. As long as we still have the option to buy the way we have in the past this is a good idea and alternative and could potentially be very good system for the next generation of consoles, especially if they come out priced like the PS3 did, near the $1000 mark.

I thought bundles were supposed to save you money, not rip you off.

This is a great news for people who want the new anti rrod of xbox 360 or for people interested to try out microsoft's xbox gaming system. The price is definitely worth the offer and there are games exclusive to microsoft that sure to be enjoyed.

@avgjoegamer if you don't have 300-400 for a gaming console that will last you 5 - 6 years than you are terrible with your finances, and need to stop blaming others for your problems. How about you stop your weekly escort dates and daily McDonald's trips, then perhaps you can afford something.

apparently my fellow gamers here are rich/overprivileged and or high paid professionals. anyone who bashes this promo are snot nosed children who have no rent no bills and money flowing from there buttcrack, if you have $3-400 for a leisure item then you are 1% and what is wrong with this world

My guess would be "The Verge" is wrong...

I think this is a good idea, poorly executed however. The 360 is awesome and I love mine...but when offering someone a contract like deal very similar to cell phone contracts...you should end up giving them a lower price...but the price they would be paying for xbox live is more than the 360 would cost outright to buy...plus it has no harddrive. They should definitely do something like this with the next xbox, but give people willing to contractually subscribe to live a break on the price of the system...it would be a win win, especially for people like myself who have had live for nearly 6 years.

This is a rip off. They want you to commit to a two year "monthly fee" contract of $15 per month. It's actually cheaper to buy the combo now with two six month xbox live cards. $40 cheaper. MS just tryin to wheel in the suckers

I may look into this. I thought about replacing my 08 model 360 with the limited edition Star Wars 360 when it launched, I just didn't wanna fork out that much $$$. This looks like a good opportunity to upgrade, especially since I keep my Xbox Live Gold membership every year anyways. Sounds a little too good to be true, so I'll wait for the actual product to hit store shelves at that rate.

LOL wow, I guess in a way its not a bad deal but with PS3 you do not need to pay to use Netflex, Play games online, Hulu, Hulu+.... So in the end its LOT cheaper to own a PS3. I guess Sony should look at this and offer PSN+ and a subscription over 2-5 years so those people who do not have all the money can pay over the next few years. 

This could work really well for the future, selling a console like a cell phone. It keeps the immediate cost down. Imagine buying an iPhone at full price; not nearly as many people would have them if that was the case.

Consoles are only getting more expensive, and this could be an interesting way for Microsoft to get an edge on the competition for the next generation. 

Ah well, good deal if you don't already own a 360.

When you think about this is a win-win for Microsoft.

They get to experiment with a new pricing model without making any investment in new hardware.

While this bundle isn't really a value for a core gamer, it's a really great deal for a price-conscious consumer who may be looking at some of the entertainment offerings.

It's very competitive with other set-top boxes that stream Netflix, etc. And it plays games.

From that standpoint, if it works, then MS will have the ability to sell these systems to lower income households.

If ti doesn't, then MS won't offer future bundles with a similar pricing model.

Incidentally, this is exactly the same pricing model that cell phone providers use.  If they didn't most of us would not be able to afford to pay the 500-600 base price for a smartphone.  We're willing to accept a higher per-month cell phone bill in order to get the hardware dirt cheap.

And, this bundle works out to be only about 40 dollars more expensive than up-front pricing.  That difference is far less than the interest would be over 2 years by putting a 4GB Kinect bundle on your credit card.

It just seems to me microsoft is really trying to push the kinect down our throats

Microsoft has to do something to compete with the awesomeness of PS3. Still no internet search, no divx, no blu-ray player, and on top of your internet bill there is another internet bill to play games online. Go buy a PS3 and be happy. The only thing you cant play is Gears of War and Halo but who cares.

wth! this new site format sucks soooo badly :P

I put a lot of effort in that old comment, and now it's gone? That's a shame. Well, this deal ends up being more expensive for consumers, not a good deal. I would break it down, but I did that yesterday and I'm not doing it again. GS, what did you do to the old page?!

That doesn't seem like a bad idea really. I'm not saying I would do it and I think the pricing is a little off (not the fact that it's more, mainly that it's such a large price to begin with) but it's nice to see a different method for a different market. After all, people do this kind of thing for phones, why not for consoles?

On the face of it, this seems like a strange move, but I think I can understand the reasoning behind it.  Think back to the article that indicated Microsoft had lost money on it's entertainment division, and the fact that Xbox sales were down 48 per cent year on year, and you can see that this is a move to reinvigorate that part of their business.

I think I read somewhere that Microsoft is now more reliant on revenue from Xbox LIVE subscriptions, so tying the hardware to a higher monthly subscription to cover the costs of the hardware will allow them to shift more hardware, while at the same time reaping the rewards of increased revenue for their key entertainment service.

For those families on lower incomes it also helps them to spread the costs, like a hire-purchase agreement. The only problem, though, as others have already stated here, is that the 4Gb version they are offering would barely meet most people's needs, and for those who do have the money up front, there are far better deals available.

Personally I think they have already reached saturation point for this generation of hardware, due to the length of time it's been on the market.  They need to bring their next-gen hardware into the spotlight.

How is this a bad deal? You're essentially getting a 99$ xbox; plus if you feel the need to migrate to the new xbox system then you'll still be paying for xbox live and getting all the extra features on the new system. Sounds decent.

Thanks Braydon St. Claire for another craptacular rumor that you consider news.  I can't wait for the next piece of garbage.  Take off ehh.

It would be best to just buy the system normally than through this promotion.

So wait, this new "cheaper" 360 with 2 years of xbl  will cost MORE than the regular 4gb 360 with 2 years of xbl?? How is that cheaper?? AND there is an early termination fee??

"The report also suggests those who sign up will be given access to some of the paid media and sports streaming services on Xbox Live."

If that's true then maybe the $15/month fee is reasonable.Thing is that Apple/Roku are free aside from the content/media you purchase. It would have to come with like HBO and Hulu Plus for free.

Talk about overpriced. You can get 2 years of Xbox live for less than $100.

funny, that's the price I paid for the used jasper model I bought last year. BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

FUFUFUFUFUFUFUFUFUFUFUFUFU

well good bye xbox 360 mine is going out the window, i will not treat my xbox like the phones out now ,screw you microsoft you will lose my money,im going ps3 because i have given you too much money already for not that much content.god im so pissed at these big companys,im so tired of their money grubbing ways",as well as an early termination fee for those who want out before the end of the deal".FU

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$15 a month times 24 months is equal $360! lol I wonder if they sat down and made up the calculations to get to 360. Maybe for the next console will be something like $30 per month times 24 months is equal $720!! OMG, my mind is blown!

@hadlee73 Well, honestly, if its like the cell phone industry? People don't want to pay full price. How much is an off-contract iPhone, Android or any other smartphone? The consumer assumption is "I need a phone, I want a nice one, and getting it on contract means I don't have to pay $400, $500 or even $600." Even cheapie, "free" phones/smartphones with 2 year contracts cost around $200 without one. Subsidies have really helped grow the cell phone market here by lowering the initial cost of entry significantly. Now, almost anyone can get a cell phone. I think one statistic has nearly 50% of American adults has a smartphone. By 2008 census numbers, that's over 115 million adults with smartphones! And I believe subsidies have a LOT to do with that. Lets be honest: allegedly there's 67.2 million 360's worldwide. If Microsoft can get cell phone numbers in the US, even throughout the world, by this model? 1q2012 saw over 390 million cellphones sold worldwide (not sure if that includes smartphones or not), and over 140 million smartphones sold. That's a single quarter. I doubt they'll get numbers that good, but selling even a tenth of that has GOT to look tempting to Microsoft. They sold 1.4 million 360's this past quarter, half of what was sold last year, and they're currently the sales leader. By the time those folks want a new system, maybe the next Xbox will be ready and on contract...

@rarsan Well, you could ditch the cable TV if you've got broadband. Not everyone could/would/should do that, but it is an option. You are right, though. $15 seems high at the moment, unless they can present a compelling reason otherwise. Again, if it included Netflix streaming ($8/mo) and/or Hulu ($8/mo), plus some other stuff, that *could* be worthwhile. Introducing a selection of games that are playable along with your subscription (like Gametap) would be good, or introducing free to play games along with a monthly stipend of MS points (usable for games, DLC, music, movies, whatever) could work too. If this is true, we really do need more details. But, alas, we won't get them until Microsoft and its partners are good and ready.

$15 per month? Wow what a ripoff.You can get a year for less than $50 on Amazon.I guess Microsoft is targeting those ignorant grandparents who know nothing about gaming and its pricing.

15 dollars a month for xbox live? holy crap im not good at math but thats a lot more than 60 bucks for 12 months. and to add insult to injury its only a 4gb xbox. useless!

Don't forget to add the price of a hard drive which you will need to do any serious gaming.

Access to what media and sports streaming services? If they are included and people don't have to have them on/even have a cable package, this is way more attractive.

If the money cost was $5, instead of $15, I'd go for it. $15 a month is way too much money to charge, considering most people are already spending at least $80 a month for broadband and TV.

A mandatory $15/month XBLive sub? I knew the $99 X360 seemed too good to be true. . . =\