Vole to licence Xbox software

FED UP with Sony's Playstation stealing its thunder in the games market, Microsoft now says could it could soon be licensing the software secrets of its rival Xbox to third party manufacturers.

Though the Seattle giant hasn't made clear which gadgets will carry the Xbox brand in future, the company has confirmed a report in Japan's top business daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun that the idea is definitely on the cards.

As a ploy that allowed Microsoft's Windows operating system to dominate, Bill Gates is now said to be equally keen to let others in on Xbox's architecture - perhaps even Japanese TV makers who could then run games on their sets.

The Vole plans to launch its next-generation game machine Xbox 360 later this year, ahead of arch rival Sony which is introducing the PlayStation 3 next spring.

PlayStation 2 hosts more than half of all world sales of video games, while Xbox and Nintendo Co.'s GameCube split the rest.

But Microsoft's chances of catching up are likely to be further dented by the fact that PlayStation 3 will come equipped with the next-generation DVD format that Sony is backing called Blu-ray Disc, whereas Xbox will continue with its current DVD standard.

Meanwhile Sony has already revealed that the processor "cell" behind PlayStation 3 will be probably used in other digital audiovisual products from the Japanese electronics maker. µ