Xbox Live is being officially rebranded Xbox Network

Xbox Live Gold service to retain its title

Microsoft has announced that it is officially rebranding its Xbox Live service “Xbox Network”. The change is not expected to alter too much in the bigger picture, and has seemingly been made purely for aesthetic, descriptive, and marketing reasons.

“‘Xbox network’ refers to the underlying Xbox online service, which was updated in the Microsoft Services Agreement,” said Microsoft in a statement to The Verge. “The update from ‘Xbox Live’ to ‘Xbox network’ is intended to distinguish the underlying service from Xbox Live Gold memberships.”

Microsoft has confirmed that the paid online service, Xbox Live Gold, will be retaining its long-time moniker. The rebranding is not expected to the subscription service or its usage in any way. Microsoft is probably keen to emphasize this following the debacle earlier this year, when a rise in charges for the Xbox Live Gold service drew ire from users and led to a very swift u-turn from the publisher.