Top News

Samsung Boosts Entertainment Options with Blockbuster Deal

T-Mobile Releases Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G

U.K. Serves Legal Papers on Facebook, Spurs Privacy Concerns

For Gen Y, Smartphones Are Necessities

Hackers Eyeing U.S. Power Grid, NSA Warns

More News >

The Redmond, Wash.-based company will phase out the point system this year, according to Inside Mobile Apps. Users purchasing content from Microsoft on the Xbox or Zune market will be charged a real dollar amount directly to their credit card, rather than purchasing points that are then used to redeem digital downloads.

Microsoft Points have been highly criticized by analysts since their inception. In the system, 80 points was the equivalent to one U.S. dollar; however, they could only be purchased in pre-determined package sizes. Users' inability to purchase the exact number of points wanted often led to spending more money than needed.

For example, if a customer wants to purchase an item priced at 1,400 points, the system doesn't provide a way to buy exactly that number of points. Instead, customers must purchase a $20 package of 1,600 points.

Microsoft will not confirm reports that its point system will be phased out, but analysts believe the move would be a good decision for the company. Competitors like Apple and Google sell digital items across various markets and services using dollar amounts, and have had incredible success in becoming large platforms for serving content across devices and media.

Now, as Microsoft attempts to unify its product lines, the best interest of the company will likely be unifying its method for purchasing digital content. The company has launched a marketing campaign that attempts to show the benefits of using all of its products together, from the Xbox, to a Windows Phone, to a Windows-powered PC.

This message would likely come across clearer if the method for making digital purchases on each platform were the same, especially as the company angles to launch Windows 8 this year, which will integrate phones, tablets and PCs across one OS.

The amount of revenue generated from digital purchases through mobile devices and even the Xbox has skyrocketed over the past two years. Microsoft's point system may have forced many customers to steer clear of the company's content.

But if Microsoft puts a simpler, unified system for making purchases across all its platforms in place, it will be in a better position to compete with companies like Apple and Google, especially as its plans for Windows 8 unfolds.