Microsoft reverses Xbox One always-on policies, but removes positive features in process

Yesterday, Microsoft announced that in response to overwhelming customer concern and bitter coverage from virtually everywhere, it would overhaul the Xbox One's always-online features, capabilities, and requirements. The announcement honestly surprised me -- I expected MS to hold the course, particularly once they started telling people to buy an Xbox 360 if they didn't like the Xbox One's requirements. That kind of closed-circuit reasoning is typically a screaming red sign that a company has ceased listening to anyone who doesn't drink the Kool-Aid.

The unjustified death of family play

One of the few genuine bright spots in the original Xbox One unveil was "family play." Gamers could share titles with up to ten friends and family, provided their consoles could connect to the internet every hour to verify that they had permission to play the game. This was a great idea that not even Steam could boast -- not yet, at least. Your 10 friends and family members couldn't play the same game at once, but 10 different people could play 10 different titles that you owned, no problem. Now, Microsoft says that feature is dead, noting that "Downloaded titles cannot be shared or resold." The company is obviously bitter at losing out on its vision for the future, as Mattrick wrote: "We imagined a new set of benefits such as easier roaming, family sharing, and new ways to try and buy games. We believe in the benefits of a connected, digital future."

Family play could still be the Xbone's killer feature, if the company doesn't kill it out of spite. The solution here is simple: Microsoft has already stated that physical games will require that a disc is in the tray. Digital games will be attached to the user's account. So, implement family play for digital products and keep physical products physical. There's no loss to this and no risk of consumer confusion. People understand, intrinsically, that they can't share a physical product. True, it's sometimes possible to convert a physical copy into a digital representation and share that, but there's still a conversion process that takes place.

The Xbox announcement that should have been

Here's what the Xbox One's launch policy should have looked like: If you don't have a regular internet connection, or don't want to leave your console online, don't worry -- you'll be able to buy games on disc and install them, just like you do on the Xbox 360. If you want to loan a game to a friend, or resell it on Ebay, go right ahead. Nothing's changed. However, if you have access to the internet, we've got a major feature for you. Xbox One is designed to let you share your digital games with up to 10 people, each of whom can play the game from their own account. There's no disc trading and no charge for this feature -- all you need is regular access to the internet. Your console needs to authenticate to our servers at least every 24 hours, while your friend's console needs to check in hourly to ensure they've got permission to be playing the game.

With a plan like that, everybody wins. It's true that attaching games to player accounts would require a flag for whether the customer owns the digital or physical version, but that's not a difficult hurdle. A policy like this means that the customers who wanted an Xbox One because of family features can look forward to it, while customers with limited internet connectivity or military personnel can still enjoy the console, too.

The fact is, there's still a $100 discrepancy between the Xbox One and PS4. Microsoft is still the company sitting behind the eight ball compared to Sony's execution thus far. But a digital library that can be shared is a feature that not even Steam (currently) provides. It was a great idea when Microsoft announced it in May, and it's still a great idea now. While there are some features that can't work in an offline version of the console, like disc-less playback, game sharing isn't one of them.

So yes, Microsoft, good job. You listened to your customers. You did something unprecedented, but don't make this an absolute either/or. The Xbox One is a better console with an optional 24-hour check-in and a shareable library than it is without one. Don't take your ball and go home -- offer customers the choice you should've given them in the first place, incentivize the online connectivity with a feature that rewards people for using it, and don't penalize them if they choose to keep the console off the internet.