Next Generation's new weekly column on marketing, cleverly dubbed--"The Weekly Marketing Column" --tackles the Xbox 360 in its maiden voyage. The pseudonymous columnist, Vijay, is "an experienced games marketer" ready to dish the straight poop on all things game marketing. I'll go ahead and give away the ending: he doesn't think the 360 did so hot.
He cites unclear product positioning, a "less-than impressive" case design, and a weak TV campaign as the areas the 360 floundered in, while praising the orchestrated PR hype that dominated the news last year. Some of his claims are reasonable: PR speak like stating the 360 was designed "to create a living entertainment experience powered by human energy" almost makes sense, if it weren't so obtuse. His other criticisms aren't as effective.
Something as subjective as the aesthetics of the 360's case design can hardly be counted as a failure. While some might dislike it, it is not the universally acknowledged mess that the original Xbox case was. He might not like the "generic computer beige" color, but it's clear some thought went into it. His outright dismissal is excessive.
The television commercials never showed the console or talked about the features, but instead promoted scenes of group play. While an infomercial might have been more effective at communicating facts, Microsoft was clearly trying to build their brand identity. This is something Sony and Apple never hesitate to do, and they are busy reaping the rewards of their respective brands. Vijay's complaints make me suspect he'd approve of the Microsoft redesign of the iPod packaging.
