Editorial: Remember, Live Silver Members: You’re Not So Important to Microsoft

One of the perks to having an Xbox Live Gold membership is having access to downloadable content (demos and whatnot included) as soon as it’s available – Major Nelson reminded us today that Xbox Live Silver members will have to wait a week to have access to these downloads.

While this is nothing new – this policy has been in-place (though, apparently, loosely enforced) for some time now – it’s brought to our attention again due to a new message that came along with today’s dashboard update which explicitly states that Silver members can’t download content that Gold members can without having to wait a week. (That’s it at the top of this post.)

Major Nelson claims this isn’t something against Silver members, but is merely something you get for being a Gold subscriber.

This is not done to annoy our Silver members—limited time exclusive access to content is just one of the many benefits of having a Gold Xbox Live account.

Then why wasn’t it like this when the Xbox 360 launched?

It seems downright idiotic to portray this as something that’s a perk for Gold members. But, for Microsoft, doing so has a two-pronged effect. They get to tell Gold members this is part of what they’re paying for and it helps encourage Silver members to upgrade and hand over their money for a Gold subscription. But why should gamers be forced to wait to download this content when they might have no interest in playing on Live – which is, let’s face it, what Xbox Live Gold is all about.

One anonymous poster on Major Nelson’s blog wrote:

I don’t play online. I like to play games for fun, like reading a book, I don’t like to compete with another players. I pay the same for the games I buy, but Microsoft says I am a second-class player and I have no right to download demos the same day that people that play online, even if they are demos without online… ¿Why I have to pay for download demos or to wait a week for a promotional product like a demo? In PC, in PS3, they are free and I can download on day one they are out. [sic]

Well, if Microsoft think I and a second class player without right to download demos, then I know what to do with multiversion games: buy the PS3 version… [sic]

Upside down question marks aside, this individual has a perfectly valid point. While demos are one thing, when you have to wait an extra period to PAY for content, something has gone horribly wrong.

We can complain all we want that Xbox Live should be an entirely free service. I, myself, have been happy to pay for years, having signed up shortly after Live launched. This is despite the fact that I can turn my PlayStation 3 on right now, pop in Resistance, and play on dedicated servers without having to fork over a penny to either Insomniac or Sony. Oh, and don’t let me forget that it’s a virtually lag-free experience – something that can’t be said about Halo 3, as much as I love it.

And still, I don’t mind paying because I use the service and have a wonderful time. But when the time of year rolls around for me to drop $50 on a Live subscription card, I don’t think to myself, “I sure do want to be able to buy the new Halo 3 content as soon as it’s available.” If there’s some sort of special video extravaganza that Microsoft wants to make available early to Gold members, I can understand that (given that they have no intention of making Live a free service). But to dangle demos, trailers and downloadable content over the head of Silver members and claim that it’s a perk of being a Gold member is just stupid.

Microsoft, rethink this policy. You know it’s wrong.