NEWS
by Mark Barley
Newell: Windows 8 is a "castastrophe for everyone" regarding PC gaming use
Valve's Gabe Newell has gone public, speaking out against Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 8.
Speaking during Casual Connect, Newell said that the main reason that Steam is coming to Linux operating systems is because the lack of games available for the platform is holding it back. He also stated that video games play a huge part in a consumer choosing an operating system.
“The big problem that is holding back Linux is games. People don’t realize how critical games are in driving consumer purchasing behavior,” he said. “We want to make it as easy as possible for the 2,500 games on Steam to run on Linux as well. It’s a hedging strategy.”
Newell then stated that Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 operating system will force a lot of equipment manufacturers to jump ship to either Apple or another operating system. “I think Windows 8 is a catastrophe for everyone in the PC space,” he said. “I think we’ll lose some of the top-tier PC/OEMs, who will exit the market. I think margins will be destroyed for a bunch of people. If that’s true, then it will be good to have alternatives to hedge against that eventuality.”
Newell then talked about the need for open platforms if innovation is to survive in the next generation. “In order for innovation to happen, a bunch of things that aren’t happening on closed platforms need to occur,” said Newell. “Valve wouldn’t exist today without the PC, or Epic, or Zynga, or Google. They all wouldn’t have existed without the openness of the platform.
“There’s a strong tempation to close the platform, because they look at what they can accomplish when they limit the competitors’ access to the platform, and they say ‘That’s really exciting.’
“We are looking at the platform and saying, ‘We’ve been a free rider, and we’ve been able to benefit from everything that went into PCs and the Internet, and we have to continue to figure out how there will be open platforms.’”
Good for Newell for speaking out against the biggest PC manufacturer in the world and speaking up for innovation. “There’s a strong tempation to close the platform, because they look at what they can accomplish when they limit the competitors’ access to the platform, and they say ‘That’s really exciting.’
“We are looking at the platform and saying, ‘We’ve been a free rider, and we’ve been able to benefit from everything that went into PCs and the Internet, and we have to continue to figure out how there will be open platforms.’”
Via AllThingsD