If you didn't know, Phil Harrison, former Sony PlayStation exec, is now the vice-president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business. And according to Phil, Microsoft's interal studios are no longer competing with traditional console manufacturers. Now, they consider even the likes of Google and Apple as competition.
Speaking at the London Games Conference (via GamesIndustry), Harrison states that Microsoft's development studios are now "multiformat" entities since they not only produce games for the Xbox brand, but for Windows 8, Surface and mobile devices, too.
We are now really a multiplatform studio…We are not just building games for Xbox 360, we're building experiences for smart glass, we're building dedicated games for Windows Phone 8 and for Windows 8.
According to Harrison, around 30 titles released for Windows 8's launch period were developed in-house at Microsoft Game Studios. He also adds that thinking of "multiformat" is part of the company's wider remit, which also pulls its other developments such as cloud computing into the entertainment business.
We think this expands our competitive map…We're no longer just competing with the traditional console companies, but our competitive landscape includes the likes of Google, the likes of Amazon, it includes obviously the likes of Apple.
Harrison adds that he thinks that this multiformat strategy is not only good for Microsoft, but good for the industry as a whole. He finishes that "there isn't an organization that embodies that strategy more precisely and concisely as Microsoft Studios inside the interactive entertainment business."
Seeing as Harrison is an MS exec, I wouldn't expect him to say anything different; although, what he states does make a lot of sense…especially for a multiformat company like Microsoft.
