THE BUZZ: According to analyst and marketing expert Scott Steinberg, Microsoft has an advantage going forward in the console market due to its broader entertainment focus.

“If I had to place my bets, I would say that Microsoft has been the most forward-looking of all three manufacturers; through a combination of skill and luck, Microsoft has very effectively positioned itself to lead the way forward through a combination of services, content and new hardware accessories – Kinect being the notable example,” he told Industry Gamers.

Sony is pretty well positioned thanks to Sony Music and Sony Pictures, however Steinberg feels that Nintendo will be the big losers: ”I think Nintendo desperately needs to play catch-up on the online, connected, and streaming multimedia fronts. Nintendo’s not unaware of the challenges it faces, but traditionally it’s been a company that in the past has been very profitable and has very cleverly straddled the line between game and technology toy. They’ve almost been operating in a different market entirely… I would never count them out of the race, as we’ve seen countless times before in history, but certainly at this point they’re going to have to give themselves a shot of adrenaline and really show why they’re going to rocket to the front of the pack.”

EGM’s TAKE: Microsoft has worked hard to establish a wide audience for its console, however it has done so at the risk of alienating there pure gaming fans, you only have to look at the lack of major first-party releases to see that. This isn’t an entirely bad thing, as it opens up the industry to brand new audiences that were unreachable before. The world of gaming is changing and only those who can adapt are going to see it through. All three have proven a willingness to change, but Nintendo is certainly on the back foot thanks to the Wii.

Source: Industry Gamers