Former Xbox Executive: "Microsoft's Console Business is Dead"
The current direction of Xbox puts a damper on the future of Microsoft's consoles, according to Laura Fryer, a corporation veteran who led the Xbox Advanced Technology Group in the early 2000s.
Laura Fryer
Fryer released a video criticizing Microsoft's strategy. She recalled that at the dawn of Xbox, the focus was on innovation, quality content, and the development of consoles. Now, Microsoft is increasingly promoting the Play Anywhere concept, which implies that gamers can play Xbox games on any device. Fryer acknowledged that the idea sounds great, but for now, it is just marketing. It potentially benefits Game Pass but diminishes the importance of consoles.
Additionally, Fryer disapproved of Microsoft's decision to create a portable PC in partnership with ASUS. In her opinion, it simply isn't needed by the audience.
"As a co-founder of the Xbox team, I don’t like the state of affairs. It’s sad to see everything I helped build gradually lose its value. It appears as though Xbox no longer wants or is able to focus on hardware," Fryer concluded.