Earlier this month we reported to you the possibility of Microsoft outsourcing the manufacture of its next Xbox console to another company. Today we have news of Microsoft shuffling its pack ahead of a possible 2013 Xbox 720 release date.
As the company works towards releasing the Xbox 360 successor, it will now be done without the leadership of Don Coyner. Cnet are reporting that it was Coyner who has guided the ship since the Xbox first made an appearance over a decade ago. Two different sources that work for Microsoft are claiming that Coyner is no longer at the helm of the design and experience group for the Xbox.
It is reported that he has been replaced by Emma Williams who had a hand in the redesigned Xbox Live Dashboard that was recently released. When asked about the news Microsoft said “we don’t comment on personnel issues”.
Coyner was a well respected executive at the company who joined the Xbox team back in 1999 as Microsoft began working on a games console. As work on the Xbox 360 gained pace his role got bigger to include user experience. He was thought to have campaigned for a unified language for the company’s second try at gaming consoles.
He wanted users to have an experience like what is found with an Apple product and look like it was designed by one person. This won him much praise when the Xbox 360 made its debut back in 2005, and saw much more success than its predecessor. This news coincides with a source from the Xbox team suggesting the next gen console will be arriving in 2013.
Do you think that 2013 would be a good time to release the next Xbox console?
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