Belatedly responding to a wave of consumer outrage over problems with its Xbox 360, Microsoft Corp. says it is extending the warranty from 90 days to one year from the date of purchase in the United States and Canada.
In a statement, Microsoft said the change in "these territories" would make the Xbox warranty consistent with "most of the world."
Sony PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii, both released late in the year, have been stealing Xbox 360's thunder. The Wii became a last-minute "must-have" gift as consumers became enthralled by its unusual motion-sensitive controller despite a strap that proved unable to stand up to heavy use.
The Xbox 360, on the other hand, infuriated consumers with problems ranging from overheating to unexpected shutdowns. The company stonewalled consumers and reporters for months, insisting the problems were overstated.
In August, an insider from Electronic Arts, Inc. said the failure rate of Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming console is actually ten times higher than what Microsoft spokespeople had admitted. Game Daily BIZ, a gaming industry publication, reported that the anonymous source tallied that of the 300 consoles EA has received, 30-50 percent of them have failed.
The outpouring of complaints coupled with the nonresponsive answers provided by Edelman, Microsoft's public relations agency, earned the Xbox 360 a spot on ConsumerAffairs.com's 12 Duds of Christmas list, keeping company with the likes of Kevin Trudeau, Martha Stewart and Girls Gone Wild.
Microsoft finally responded late last week, announcing its new warranty policy Friday.
"Customers who experience hardware issues with their Xbox 360 within one year of purchase can have their consoles repaired at no cost," the Microsoft statement said. The new warranty policy is retroactive, so consumers who may have already paid for an out-of-warranty Xbox 360 repair within one year of purchase will be eligible for reimbursement of their console repair charges.
"Customers who have already paid out-of-warranty repair charges within their first year of ownership can expect reimbursement checks for the amount of their console repair in approximately 10 weeks," the company said. Microsoft said reimbursements will be automatically distributed, so customers need not contact Microsoft.
The company said it has set up a Web site for customers who have questions or who experience hardware issues -- www.xbox.com/en-US/support/contact. The site answers questions about warranty status and contains troubleshooting tips and support information.
