In a cryptic press release issued on Monday, IBM announced Microsoft's intention to use an IBM chip in the next-generation Xbox, which is expected to debut in early 2005.
"Microsoft has licensed leading-edge semiconductor processor technology from IBM for use in future Xbox products and services to be announced at a later date," the statement said.
The release studiously avoids naming the chip architecture, referring only to "IBM's family of state-of-the-art processors."
However, IBM spokesman Scott Brooks said IBM's "family of processors" are all PowerPCs. He declined to name the architecture specifically, saying IBM had promised Microsoft it would not do so.
He also said the statement refers to the Xbox's main processor -- not an ancillary chip.
"They looked at a number of possibilities, and we are very happy they selected us," Brooks said.
A spokeswoman for Microsoft, which also issued a release, declined to elaborate. "It's quite simple," she said. "It's an announcement of a technology agreement. There's not much more to be said."
But Richard Doherty, research director of Envisioneering Group of Seaford, New York, said the announcement could be the first in a more general shift by Microsoft away from Intel.
"It's a very big win for IBM. It's a clear change of direction for Microsoft, and it's a very unfortunate surprise for Intel," he said.
"There's quite a bit of irony here," he added, referring to the fact that it has always been assumed that Apple would move to Intel, rather than Microsoft moving to the PowerPC, a chip technology co-developed by Apple, IBM and Motorola.
Doherty said the PowerPC is very secure and boasts great graphics. "Intel doesn't have the security IBM does," he said.
He said he hasn't seen any specs, but he said he expects IBM to brief analysts in Silicon Valley on Wednesday morning.
Whatever the details, he said the chip will likely perform much like the IBM PowerPC 970, better known as the G5 used in Apple's Power Macs, when it ships in late 2004 or early 2005. "I think performance will be akin to a G5 today," he said.
Doherty said IBM chips will now power all the major game consoles -- the next-generation PlayStation will be based on IBM's The Cell, and Nintendo currently uses the PowerPC in the GameCube.
Microsoft will use the Virtual PC technology it acquired from Connectix last year to provide backward-compatibility with the current generation of Xbox games.
Doherty said the move could signal a more general shift by Microsoft toward chips from manufacturers other than Intel, especially as the company migrates into other markets such as media center PCs, consoles and portables.
"The new Microsoft is hardware-agnostic," he said. "I think we will see Microsoft decided on chips on their merits now, rather than an aging bias."
Klik om te vergroten...
