Chapter 11: Developing and Managing Products

Microsoft along with 24 other globally recognized companies (Apple,IBM,Google, etc.)  were mentioned by Business Week and Boston Consulting group as some of the worlds top leading innovative groups. The article expresses some of the perks that these companies have over many others including higher average stock returns and higher average revenue growth compared to other companies that lacked an innovative edge.
Microsoft's New product the Xbox Smart Glass (Compatible with the Xbox 360) is one of Microsoft's newest additions to Microsoft's Plethora of gaming products and innovation.

The Xbox smart glass is still in the introductory stage of the life cycle as it was just released a month ago. Some of the innovative features include:

-Data transfer

-Dual Screen Display

-Data Sync

As well as many other features of the Xbox Smart Glass that can be experienced through the use of Mobile Phones or Tablets running Operating Systems Microsoft OS, Android Jelly Bean 4.2, and Apple IOS 6.

Microsoft Smart Glass serves as a second screen which can be used to see additional information for TV shows and gaming.

Chapter 16: Integrated Marketing Communication

Promotion is key in a products marketing mix. Without it consumers would not be aware of current products/services on the market. Promotional integration in Microsoft's Xbox 360 is important due to the fact that the Xbox 360 is a technological product and needs promotional depth in order to shed light on the systems functions, specs as well as other properties that are not grasped at first by the naked eye.

The Microsoft Xbox 360's competitive advantage over it's competitors the Sony PS3 and the Nintendo Wii are the following:

Xbox 360's competitive advantage over the Sony PS3:

-High Grossing (Xbox Exclusive) Franchises such as: Halo, Gears of War, Fable, Kinect Adventures, and MineCraft which have combined sales that Exceed more than 70 million copies sold as November.

-First to the punch: The Xbox 360 was the first system to integrate Netflix as a part of the overall gaming experience. The fluidity of Netflix is therefore maximized due to the fact that it has been on the system longer and patches were created to fix any errors in comparison to on the Nintendo Wii and The Sony PS3 which experience lag from time to time.
-Xbox Live: The Xbox Live online service is the premier online service for gamers of all kinds. The Xbox Live service has dedicated servers that allow it to run smoothly and with minimal lag so that players can stream data and play games with other players across the globe seamlessly with no problem.
Microsoft uses different types of promotional tools within its promotional mix. Some of these include:
Advertising-The Xbox 360 advertises it's console the Xbox 360 through commercials, blogs, websites and word to mouth communication.  

Sales Promotion-The Xbox 360 is on sale for the holidays. On the official Microsoft website the Xbox is available in Holiday Bundles that start at $249.00 that is $50.00 off of the retail price. The holiday bundles come in 3 forms.
-Xbox 360 Slim 250GB console $249.00 with 2 games (Kinect not Included)
-Xbox 360 Slim 4 GB console $249.00 with 2 games (Kinect Included)
-Xbox 360 Slim 250 GB console $349.00 with 2 games (Kinect Included)

The methods in which Microsoft reaches potential and existing customers is through the process of communication.
Communication-The process by which meanings are exchanged or shared through a common set of symbols.
Mass Communication-The way that Microsoft is able to reach many of it's new and existing customers is through the web. There are more than 1 billion internet users across the world and with this huge pool of people to work with the world wide web serves as a very important tool in reaching potential customers.

Chapter 10: Product Concepts

Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming system falls under consumers product. It is purchased to satisfy the individuals personal want's.
The Xbox 360 slim (shown below) is a product item by Microsoft within their video game product line. The Xbox 360 comes in two forms the original released in 2005 which comes in two color variants white and black with two storage capacitive options (20GB,120GB). The Xbox 360 underwent product modification to improve performance and to make it a more viable option over the Sony PS3 and the Nintendo Wii. Some of the modifications in the new Xbox 360 slim had were the following.
-Integrated Wireless WiFi integration allowing players to seamlessly connect to the internet at faster speeds.
-Touch activated On/Off button and Disc Tray sensor for gamer convenience.
-Kinect Capability for full use of the Kinect motion gaming experience.
-Modified slim design with more cooling vents to keep optimal performance and stability of the system constant. 
All of this as well as the fact that the memory variants are available in two versions as well (4GB,250GB). The 250GB version is 130GB greater than the previous systems highest capacity of 120GB. Within the width of Microsoft's product mix are computer software, online services as well as video games.
The release of the new Xbox 360 slim was in an attempt of planned obsolescence make it's predecessor the Xbox 360 (Elite) obsolete in the eyes of gamers.

The Xbox 360 (Elite) 2005 (Before)

The Xbox 360 Slim (2010-Present) (After)

The Xbox 360 is it's own brand under Microsoft. It is represented by a circle to represent 360 degrees and the X within the circle represents a new edgy take on gaming. The green surging the circle represents human energy.

The Xbox 360 Logo