Despite the fight between main smartphone manufacturers to federate application developers around their app store in mobile arena, Microsoft still applies the classical game console business model where the top-5 game editors provide a large part of the content. Zune will be the content platform. No signs of app store ... until now.
However, a "Kinect app store" would definitely re-position Microsoft against different kinds of competitors :
Against kings of smartphone apps. This would give Microsoft a first mover advantage against a possible extension of Apple or Google on TV. Both companies federate a large community of developers and already have thousands of apps available. Both Apple and Google could create home devices running their portfolio of apps on TV.
Against game console manufacturers. This would rapidly build the largest portfolio of console games. Of course, Sony & Nintendo could react but both companies don't have any experience with support of large communities of developers. Microsoft support developers for 2 decades. Of course, this would push Microsoft to some compromises in the way they currently deal with developers.
Against telco and SetTopBox vendors in the small IPTV market. Leveraging their leading position in IPTV, Microsoft could propose SetTopBox extensions/migration scenarios for consumers to benefit of these apps. Most of SetTopBox devices hardware setup is today probably too weak to support this kind of local applications, especially if it was not foreseen from day-1. Moreover, Microsoft significantly reduced the price of basic XBox. Simple SetTopBoxes are doomed to disappear.
It's obvious that KIN and KINECT have same roots. There is no coincidence. KIN project on mobile is perhaps delayed, waiting for Microsoft to focus on home during 6-12 months, develop an app position on this market and bring a compatible smartphone afterwards. Microsoft would then be the first player addressing the whole scope of multi-screen.
But even the large Microsoft is too small to develop all applications for this potential. Moreover, leveraging a community of developer largely supports the development of a device during beginning of this 21st century. So Microsoft probably has interest to delegate app development to developer communities. Apple paved the way of developer federation. Google proved that this model can be copied. Microsoft can then smartly activate developer communities, which has been his territory during last two decades, seeding their multimedia app portfolio from TV green field instead of overcrowded mobile arena.
Launching a KIN in June this year did not indeed make sense in this scenario. No obvious reasons for consumers to buy KIN now. If Kinect is a success, rules of the game then change and a complementary mobile phone then fully applies for young consumers and thus solve the issues addressed in this post and in this post.
Another market analysis published these days shows that consumers, when buying a new TV set, more focus on online connectivity than on 3D features. So consumers are demanding an Internet TV model.
Until today, this "Kinect app store" scenario still is an assumption. On the other hand, the fact that TV landscape and ecosystem will drastically evolve in the coming 5 years is a given.
So, game console manufacturers, telco vendors, smartphone vendors, gaming software editors have some time to prepare a battle plan taking the "Kinect app store" scenario into account. Telecom and cable operators would also be well inspired to analyse such a scenario.
Because, for all these players, there are so many things to do to anticipate possible next moves of the dinosaur.
To be continued ...
Benoit Quirynen
