I have previously looked at how well Microsoft is achieving its own aim of “3 screens an the cloud” and thought I’d provide and update following recent announcements and rumours. I am obviously looking at the 4 different platforms along with 5 services. These 5 services can be summarised as:
- Windows Live: Personal
- Bing: Discovery
- Zune: Music and video
- Xbox (technically Xbox Live): Gaming
- Office: Productivity
The below image shows you how I see the various services at the moment (faded colour shows an area that leaves much to be desired and no colour shows no service available).
I think that the Windows Live experience on the TV (via Xbox) is lacking, access to SkyDrive would be useful. Bing has a presence on the TV but it’s not as good as it could be and on the PC the user generally have to go to their browser to access Bing. Zune works in the cloud but don’t offer a great experience, for example it’s not possible to organise my music in the cloud. Xbox’s presence on the PC is minimal with Games for Windows Live offering gamer score points and that’s about it and Xbox in the cloud has far more potential than it’s current offering. There is no presence of Office on the TV.
The below image shows you how I think this strategy will look by the end of this year.
We know that by the end of the year Microsoft will have improved the Bing integration on the Xbox making it a very useful feature.
The below image shows you how I think this strategy will look by the end of 2012.
I think that by the end of 2012 Microsoft will have brought better Windows Live support to the TV by integrating more Windows Live services more deeply within Xbox; allowing users direct access to their SkyDrive. I believe that Bing will have been integrated into Windows 8 allowing users to search locally for content and finding data from across the web through partnered services. I think the Zune brand will be non-existent with its music and video services becoming part of a broader Xbox Live service. I reckon that Xbox will have been integrated into Windows and if news from today is anything to go by this is very likely and I think there will be improved cloud support allowing users to game and enjoy entertainment wherever they are. I expect that Office will remain absent from the TV.
I think by the end of 2012 the services could be surmised as:
- Windows Live: Personal
- Bing: Discovery
- Xbox (technically Xbox Live): Entertainment
- Office: Productivity
This would continue Microsoft’s consolidation and integration of services that has been quite apparent in the past few major announcements from the company. Microsoft has consolidated its various UI for its three screens down to the Metro UI and continued to integrate services like Bing into more products.
I think that by the end of 2012 Microsoft will have pretty much achieved its aim of 3 screens and the cloud and will have done more that just catered for it but also given them all the same look with the Metro UI. What are your thoughts on this (no doubt there will be some grumbles about my Zune expectation)?
