2023 looked to be a very busy year for Microsoft. Especially for his efforts to close the purchase of Activision Blizzard. However, now his year will be marked by another theme: Xbox has suffered the largest leak in its history. During the last few hours, people have been looking for culprits for the event, most of them pointing—without evidence—directly at the FTC. However, the reality is that everything was caused by an oversight by Microsoft.
Firstly, the US regulatory body has distanced itself from what happened. While the files, which laid out Xbox’s planning for the next 7 years, were on a public server in the Northern District Court of California, It wasn’t the FTC that uploaded them..
“The FTC was not responsible for uploading Microsoft’s plans for its games and consoles to the court’s website. Microsoft was responsible for the error in uploading these documents“he commented to NBCNews Douglas Farrar, FTC spokesman.
At this point it is important to pause to explain the following. During the trial that pitted Microsoft against the FTC over its purchase of Activision, both parties provided documents that were available to the public. right here in Hypertextual We rely on them in various publications.
Nevertheless, were edited to hide sensitive or confidential information. Thus, a portion of the files leaked today could also have been made public, but hiding any data that could harm the development of the legal process or directly harm Microsoft.
The problem, then, is that Microsoft—most likely its lawyers—provided documents without any editing. These should only have been shared to authorized personnel through secure and, of course, private links.
Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley, through an order issued shortly after the leak broke, acknowledged that the documents should not have been shared publicly.
On the other hand, a source consulted by Bloombergwho preferred to remain anonymous due to his closeness to the case, assured that the error is entirely from the Xbox matrix. Realizing the commotion caused in the early hours of September 19, she quickly contacted the court to have the files removed.
Obviously, it was too late. By the time Microsoft realized its mistake, confidential Xbox information was rapidly circulating all over the internet. Users of ResetEra, the most popular video game forum in the world, were the first to find the gold mine. It didn’t take them long to analyze and spread the leak.
Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, has already spoken out on the matter: “We’ve seen the conversation about old emails and documents. It’s hard to see our team’s work shared in this way because so much has changed. There’s a lot to be excited about now and in the future. We will share actual plans when we are ready.”
Among the most relevant information about the leak is, for example, a Xbox Series X with renewed design, without a disk drive and with 2TB of storage. It will be released at the end of 2024 and will cost the same as the current console. A redesigned controller was also seen, even with its Elite variant. And what is generating the most conversation are the emails in which Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, shows interest in buying Nintendo.