# Xbox Live fees to increase



## Moonfly

I fear there will be a few people unhappy about this move.


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## Ares

I think this is a bad move on their part, a $10 increase for a 12month subscription I can only imagine what's being said on the blogs......What is your opinion of MS's latest move Dan?


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## Moonfly

*MS boss:* Global economy is pants and we should follow everyone elses example and try generate even more cash, there's some light getting though that massive pile of paper Bill keeps out back.

*Game division exec:*Well, we have millions of loyal online users, who despite moaning a bit, have continued to pay the XBL fee, so they must be happy to pay. How about we use the economy crisis as an excuse, slap another 10 on the fee, and da da, millions in profit for absolutely nothing.

*MS Boss:* I can see why you got that job exec, make it happen, and while your at it, have a pay rise and a promotion.

*Game division exec:* He he suckers. Now, about that second boat . . . . . .


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## Ares

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:


So there will be nothing extra for the additional $10 just the same service I stand corrected, it's not a bad move it's worse.


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## Moonfly

Its just a price increase, nothing more. Nobody will do anything about it though, so we'll just have to suck it up. Everything is going up in price, while wages and jobs are reducing all over the place. Welcome to the future people, its primed with a lower standard of living for everyone :foottap:

Part of me thinks they are just maintaining the difference between XBL ad PSN. I also like the way they say it only affects some members. Yeah those in the largest market share regions and in the most affluent countries, nice one M$, I almost didnt realise that one.


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## Ares

I think your right most gamers will whine and complain that it's unfair but in the end they will still pay to play. If MS is doing this I guess it will be a matter of time before Sony starts doing it as well.


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## Moonfly

Well, they already introduced a premium service. If everyone coughs up then an increase would seem likely as long as the content is there. If they are slow to adopt then probably not. XBL does have the best service, but if it goes up any more I'll scrap it off.


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## Ares

Moonfly said:


> Well, they already introduced a premium service. If everyone coughs up then an increase would seem likely as long as the content is there. If they are slow to adopt then probably not. XBL does have the best service, but if it goes up any more I'll scrap it off.



I am currently a subscriber of PS+ right now the content is lacking when compared to XBL in the beginning it was getting content every week now it's every two weeks so at this rate it's going to take awhile.

I would be careful about saying "but if it goes up any more I'll scrap it off" otherwise Bill might be showing up at your front door.addle: 


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## Moonfly

Ive just this last couple weeks renewed my year XBL, so its not that bad for me, I'll have the best part of 9 months to evaluate things. I really dont see where the asking price is justified though, never mind an increase. You only pay for the multiplayer component, which the devs provide anyway not MS, and all the other content pays for itself via DLC. The only thing M$ have to provide is the XBL shell that developers run their game servers on, whic again should be covered by all the content downloads on XBL.

This is nothing more than profit boosting, and we all know M$ is quite profitable anyway, even the gaming division.


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## celica_pete21

I think if they are not going to include anything extra in this, it's a terrible move! Or at least offer like 1 year of netflix for free, or partner with someone to offer some kind of deal that gets your mind off that extra $10.

However, I've never spent the full amount on 12 months anyway. A quick search on Amazon and you can find 12 month cards for $30-$35 sometimes. Still in the end, we already pay too much for (some) game add ons. 

But like you said Dan, rates increase, jobs decrease... classic case of inflation right here.


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## TypeA

When I consider the 100s of hours Ive spent online gaming, and the shear game REPLAY value Ive derived from their fast, stable and otherwise robust online gaming system from XBL, $100 a year would be worth every penny. Furthermore, considering the increased number of registered XBL gold online-gaming users this generation has brought, I dont blame M$ in the least for this increase. Servers arent free, no more than are games at $60 a crack. Dont like it? Might I suggest PSN and have a nice day


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## Moonfly

XBL generates plenty of cash from DLC and micro transactions, which more than cover the cost of running the service. Further more, the fee is only there for gold users, and pretty much all they get for their money is the online multiplayer component. Microsoft dont even host the servers for these games, they are all run by the developers anyway, and they dont charge, would you proffer they did too? All MS provide for your money is the XBL framework the devs servers run on, and like I say, this is free anyway via a silver account and funded through micro transactions and DLC.

Ive never moaned about paying the fee, but I certainly dont think it should increase :nono:, its nothing more than a profit boosting move.


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## TypeA

'Nothing more than a framework', tell that to Sony. My bad thinking the servers were M$'s doing, it still doesnt change the fact that the typical online gamer gets every bit of what a gold account offers. And yes, thats just in online gaming. Those that have anything bad to say about the value of $60 XBL fees still complain about the $60 for a 12-hour single player experience (Which, save for games like GTA, Oblivion, and Orange Box, 12 hours is a pretty good length this generation). 

BTW, being the best almost always generates lots of cash, which IMO makes their profit margin irrelevant.


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## Moonfly

What I said though that the fee as it stands is ok, I can bear it as the service is good. Increasing a fee that is already nothing more than a fee determined by the fact MS thinks its service is good so the fee is justified, is merely pocket lining.

Ive nothing against any service doing well because its good. What I am against is companies like MS cashing in on success by simply upping a fee, but providing nothing extra for it.

If your favourite food was suddenly 25% more, and for no reason other than because you like it so they expect you would pay for it, would you still agree with that, because thats basically what MS have done. If you ask me, its like having pay per view tv, but were you also have to pay a fee to browse the viewings on offer before you actually watch anything. Good old software eh, and good old MS for capitalising.


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## TypeA

Dont get me wrong, Id love to pay less for the best. Maybe its just the Republican in me but I always have a hard time blaming ANY company for capitalizing on their own success. If developers charged extra for online gaming beyond their $60 for the game itself, we wouldnt be having this conversation lol


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## celica_pete21

I think the biggest issue at hand is not Microsoft raising prices, it's the timing. Where jobs are scarce, economies dipping, etc, it was hard enough for a lot of people to keep with the prices they were at. I think they will in fact lose some online gamers, simply because a lot more people are being more strict about where their money goes.

However, if they do lose any, it wouldn't be much in the grand scheme of things. And I do agree with you, XBL is a massively growing community. So why not make more money on it? Although, I do think if they are going to increase rates, they should deliver some new online features... other than the ones they are releasing soon.


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## Moonfly

IMHO, this fee increase is intended to fund the R&D of kinect, as a bit of a fails safe if you will. We all ready pay for a service that is free absolutely everywhere else, and that service is already funded through revenue generated by its content (hence the silver service), so an increase that offers no further content is unjustified IMO. It basically translates into inferior value for money for the customer, and on that basis alone, I wont defend the price increase.

Whether people are happy or not is entirely personal, and I wouldnt disagree with peoples personal opinion. I may even be in the minority, but I wont defend one of the biggest most profitable companies in the world when all they are doing is profit boosting at the expense of a loyal customer base.


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## jayhawk

Agreed ^


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