Microsoft hints at Xbox One digital sharing comeback

The grand digital vision for Xbox One has not been forgotten.

That’s the message from Xbox boss Phil Spencer who told GameSpot at GDC that the future for the company’s console remains very much digital-focused.

"We believe in a digital future on our box," Spencer said. "I know when I say this I always get beat up, but I think some of what we were trying to say last summer was right.

We understand what games you own and who you are and how you move around and who you might want to loan rights to your games or gift your games to. We totally believe in that future. And any other marketplace you play in, these kind of mechanisms are out there.

"We are now fully heads down on thinking about and building out the future of our digital marketplace to enable what people would expect, and hopefully some things that will delight them beyond their expectations."

Many of Microsoft’s bold ambitions for Xbox One were famously reversed following a vocal backlash to its E3 presentation in the summer, but the platform holder has already said that it hopes to re-introduce many of the policies at some point down the line.

In the present the company’s digital ambitions can be more clearly seen through its new-found willingness to compete directly with its retail partners.