So what has been the thinking behind this controversial proposition, and why is Microsoft so keen to highlight the wider entertainment functionality of its system? "Microsoft has a corporate desire to own the living room, first identified in the mid-90s: it is not addressing consumers' needs but Microsoft's desires," says analyst and author Nicholas Lovell. "Unfortunately, leaving aside the PR difficulties here, the fundamental strategy is flawed. When the original Xbox was launched, there were three contenders to control the media experience: set-top-box, PC, console. Now there are two more - smartphone and tablet - and I believe they have already won."
Lovell's argument, which matches much of the strategic thinking coming out of this sector, is that screened entertainment is evolving into a "second screen" model. Every one has a primary screen - a tablet or a smartphone - which is personal to them, but each household also has a single shared screen - the TV. "In time, the first screen will control the shared screen with no need for a separate box," says Lovell. He sees a near future in which elements such as access to video-on-demand and live television services are rendered through personal subscriptions on the primary screens, so we won't need fixed set-top boxes sitting beneath our televisions. And there's no space for Xbox One in this scenario.
