Microsoft to Pull Complete Reversal on Xbox One DRM Policies

Sources indicate Microsoft is going to move away much of what's caused the company so much headache.
The tug-of-war between Microsoft and Sony just got more interesting. Multiple sources inform me Microsoft will announce what amounts to a complete reversal on its DRM policies for Xbox One today.

What does this mean?

No more always online requirement
The console no longer has to check in every 24 hours
All game discs will work on Xbox One as they do on Xbox 360
Authentication is no longer necessary
An Internet connection is only required when initially setting up the console
All downloaded games will function the same when online or offline
No additional restrictions on trading games or loaning discs
Region locks have been dropped
It is unclear what caused this huge change in policy right after E3, a week where Microsoft executives spent days explaining, justifying, and talking about its policies to the press. I suspect Microsoft’s official announcement will say something to the effect of “we've been closely listening to consumer feedback.”

Based on what I’m being told, that’s definitely true.

Microsoft has taken an enormous amount of heat regarding DRM policies with its new console. Sony became consumer heroes at E3, announcing PlayStation 4 would not treat used games differently, and the status quo would reign. The company released this video, twisting the knife

AtrumX wrote:B...But what will Zak have to bash on now? :'(

Lol, jk jk

S7 Epic wrote:I hope there's still a way to play discless.

Critics have blasted Microsoft over its used game policy for its Xbox One gaming console. Games are locked to a user’s personal Xbox Live account and require a persistent Internet connection for verification. The company also gave developers the freedom to prevent games from being shared with friends or even sold at certain retailers. In the wake of Microsoft’s bad press, gaming giant Steam appears to be preparing its own lending feature for its popular gaming marketplace.


One common complaint about Steam was a user’s inability to share games with friends, but newly discovered code suggests that the company is working on a “Shared Game Library.” A member of the popular gaming forum NeoGAF spotted the line of code, which specifically mentions sharing games with friends. The feature will allow a friend to play a specific title, although the lender and borrower will not be able to play at the same time.

A snippet of Steam’s code follows below.

“SteamUI_JoinDialog_SharedLicense_Title” “Shared game library”
“SteamUI_JoinDialog_SharedLicenseLocked_OwnerText” “Just so you know, your games are currently in use by %borrower%. Playing now will send %borrower% a notice that it’s time to quit.”
“SteamUI_JoinDialog_SharedLicenseLocked_BorrowerText” “This shared game is currently unavailable. Please try again later or buy this game for your own library.”

S7 Coolhand wrote:I wonder how many people's console decision this will affect.  Gotta say they have played this brilliantly by stirring up the controversy and then reversing the decisions, with a bonus of coinciding with the fail update that bricked a lot of PS3's

Shuntentatsu wrote:

S7 Coolhand wrote:I wonder how many people's console decision this will affect.  Gotta say they have played this brilliantly by stirring up the controversy and then reversing the decisions, with a bonus of coinciding with the fail update that bricked a lot of PS3's

Congrats, out of all the comments I've seen since this announcement yours has to be the most moronic and ignorant.

S7 SockPuppet wrote:Kenny's comments are just childish and lacking any validity.