Shane Kim: Xbox 360 will last until 2015

Following the announcement of Project Natal, Microsoft's corporate vice president for strategy and business development has stated that he believes the Xbox 360 will have a ten year life-span.

Sony has made it very clear that they're targeting a ten year life-span for the PlayStation 3, which they have almost achieved with their PlayStation 2 - Note, a ten year life-span means ten years of support, not ten years before its successor releases.

Microsoft's goal for the Xbox 360 has been less clear, especially following their short-lived support for the original Xbox. However, Shane Kim believes that their newly announced Project Natal will help propel the console into 2015:

"We firmly believe that the Xbox 360 has a life cycle through 2015 (ten years after the launch)," Kim told Venture Beat.

"Project Natal is a great innovation. It will work with every Xbox 360 sold. It's not about pushing more pixels on the screen. It's about how to break down barriers that stop people from playing games."

That Microsoft is willing to support their console for ten years is surely good news for gamers.