One of the most common sentiments I've seen in regards to SIE's global consolidation is the fear or worry that the localized nature of the PlayStation brand, which allowed them to specifically cater to multiple different markets based on said markets' sensibilities, may be gone with one place calling the shots for everyone.
I'm not going to speculate on what the future of Sony is on that front, but it got me thinking- why is Xbox, the brand that has the least global penetration of the three major platform holders, doing something like that? My understanding is Xbox already has a consolidated corporate structure based in the US, deciding the marketing, positioning, product development, messaging, and so on for every place, including the rest of the world. Clearly that has had repercussions including with the Xbox's generally limited appeal in Asia and mainland Europe. Would it not be advisable for Xbox then to also have local corporate structures to help pitch it to each individual market and possibly gain better footholds there in the process?
I'm not going to speculate on what the future of Sony is on that front, but it got me thinking- why is Xbox, the brand that has the least global penetration of the three major platform holders, doing something like that? My understanding is Xbox already has a consolidated corporate structure based in the US, deciding the marketing, positioning, product development, messaging, and so on for every place, including the rest of the world. Clearly that has had repercussions including with the Xbox's generally limited appeal in Asia and mainland Europe. Would it not be advisable for Xbox then to also have local corporate structures to help pitch it to each individual market and possibly gain better footholds there in the process?