Microsoft has announced a rebrand of their online services, shifting away from the long-running Xbox Live brand and now calling their collective online services ‘Xbox network’. For whatever reason that’s a lower case ‘n’ in network. However, Microsoft has clarified that this does not mean that Xbox Live Gold memberships are going away.
The rebrand emerged from users in recent Xbox system software betas, with clips recorded from games now being uploaded to Xbox network instead of Xbox Live.
Microsoft issued a statement to The Verge saying, “’Xbox network’ refers to the underlying Xbox online service, which was updated in the Microsoft Services Agreement. The update from ‘Xbox Live’ to ‘Xbox network’ is intended to distinguish the underlying service from Xbox Live Gold memberships.”
Further to this, Microsoft told Eurogamer that “Xbox Live isn’t going away. We are making ongoing adjustments to create a simpler, more descriptive messaging system for Xbox in different areas. None of these experiences or features will change as part of these updates.”
That probably won’t stop the rumour mill running, though.
Game clips will soon be uploaded to ‘Xbox network’ instead of ‘Xbox Live’.
Microsoft has gone back and forth a bit with the Xbox Live brand over the last year, as the company puts an ever-increasing focus on Xbox Game Pass. There were hints at a name change when Microsoft updated its Services Agreement last August, leading to rumours that Microsoft was setting up to ditch paid online multiplayer altogether. That proved not to be the case, and in fact, the company tried to force through a significant price hike that would have doubled the yearly cost of Xbox Live Gold subscriptions, before quickly reversing the move in response to the fan backlash.
At the same time, they acknowledged that it was a pain point for less well-off gamers that free-to-play online games like Fortnite required an Xbox Live Gold subscription when PlayStation Plus does not charge for such games. Microsoft will soon also offer free online gaming for free-to-play games.
The whole shift to Xbox network does make a bit of sense for the company as Xbox Live no longer encapsulates all of their online business. Games are bought from the Microsoft Store, you can subscribe to Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate bundles in Xbox Live Gold. Xbox Live is now just one facet of the company’s gaming business.
Still… it’s weird that it’s a lower case ‘n’, right?
