Microsoft Corporation chairman Bill Gates bid the Consumer Electronics Show a bittersweet farewell as he opened it for the last time in his legendary career. After showing a cool video of what he'll do after stepping down from Microsoft, Gates talked about the next 10 years in the electronics scene, earmarking touch screen, faster, and more accessible connectivity, and HD technology as the future's pillars. Head on to the full article for more details.

It's official: Microsoft will bring out the big guns in CES 2008 as Bill Gates and Robbie Bach take center stage with keynote addresses. This should provide a nice blast-off for an event which never fails to deliver glimpses of the latest in the gadgets scene. Are we expecting big announcements? You bet. Read the full article for more information on Microsoft's CES 2008 presence.

New year, new job seems to be the mantra of some game execs nowadays. Hours ago, we reported about nine Take-Two board members who decided not to seek re-election, this time around, a Microsoft exec who has ties to Xbox is the one filing his resignation. Bryan Lee, the deputy of Xbox honcho Robbie Bach for God knows how long, will soon leave the halls of Microsoft to pursue personal interests.

According to a Seattle Post Intelligencer report, Bach himself announced the news internally recently. If you would remember, Lee who originally belonged to the Xbox group was moved to the company's Zune division. He is a six-year MS veteran and is in charge of managing the business development and marketing of the Zune. Now that he's out of MS, J Allard will be the go-to guy for the Zune division.

So why did he leave MS? Tongues are wagging that the reason behind it is the far-from-perfect performance of the Zune. But MS spokeswoman for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division, Molly O'Donnell has this to say:

People will always read tea leaves, but the truth remains that this is just a natural course of organizational changes.

There is no word on who would replace Bryan Lee, but we'll be sure to update you about this as more info comes our way.

So does anybody want to tackle the mother of all interviews over at the Mercury News website? Robbie Bach (Robert J. Bach, 44 year old male, married with 3 children, President of Entertainment and Devices Division of Microsoft Corporation - that's Games for Windows, Zune, and Xbox 360) said a lot during the looooooong one-hour interview and there's some interesting stuff.

We'll summarize each main point. If you don't like what you read or you disagree, don't blame us - we're just paraphrasing the guy...

So here's the world according to Robbie Bach:

PSP/DS killer, Zune, overstretching, and Sony. Microsoft always prioritizes its resources. Instead of going for a GameBoy or PSP killer, they went for an iPod killer because the iPod market is a "significant marketplace." Besides, their gaming people should focus on the Xbox 360 instead of a handheld gaming device. Sony is "spread really thin" - PSP vs. DS, PS3 vs. Wii and 360. Microsoft didn't want that kind of strain.

Bottom line: Zune is like Xbox. Millions of dollars invested. Lots of people. But is every expense really a cost? Some developments benefit other projects, for example. It's all an accounting question. Right now it's hard to track.

Gaming: content. Microsoft has "a great line-up of games." Viva Piñata, Gears of War, Need for Speed: Carbon, the Tom Clancy titles, Call of Duty 3, and lots more coming down the tubes.

Gaming: value and availability. Console is at $299 and $399 (US dollars). Consumers looking for a game console will go logical: what is affordable and what is available.

What they mean by "shipped." When Microsoft says "shipped" that means it's left the Memphis distribution warehouse and is headed to a retailer. When Sony says "shipped" that means it's left the factory. That's a six-week to eight-week lag between what the two companies call "shipped." Microsoft has close to 10 million shipped.

Microsoft FTW. "Where's the best content? Is it cross-platform? Where was it first developed?" and "You have to ask the question, over the life cycle, who has the cost advantage? Who can price most effectively? Who can reach the price points quicker?" Don't forget Xbox Live. And most game publishers do their initial development work on the Xbox 360.

That's only half of it. More about the Xbox 720, money, and Halo after the jump. Just click on the "Full Article" link below to read on...