Microsoft abandoning MS Points, new report claims

By Dave Cook

Microsoft is doing away with MS Points on Windows 8 and potentially Xbox 360 in favour of real currency, a new report has suggested.

The Verge reports that the Windows 8 movie store has started charging for rentals and purchases in real currency, which a is a step away from the Microsoft Points model used in the operating system’s beta phase.

Using an advanced edition of Windows 8, the site claims that you can still pay using Microsoft Points while using a credit card, but that the currency defaults to real money during the process.

With Windows 8 mechanics strongly tipped for the next iteration of Xbox, it seems unlikely that Microsoft would want to fragment its install base by having two sets of payment methods, suggesting that real currency is the way forward for the console.

We’ll have more as it happens.

Thanks Eurogamer.