Xbox One could eventually offer backwards compatibility through the cloud, says Microsoft

Xbox One could eventually offer backwards compatibility using its Azure cloud servers, Microsoft's senior director Albert Penello told Gamespot, stating that the cloud has a multitude of functions that Microsoft is still exploring.

According to Penello, the cloud could potentially offer backwards compatibility using streaming technology in a similar manner to what Sony plans with its Gaikai service. While neither of the next-gen consoles will offer this feature at launch, although Sony has previously stated it is looking to use streaming technology to make older content available for its PlayStation 4.

"That's one of the things that makes [the cloud] at the same time both totally interesting and hard to describe to people. Because what the cloud can do is sort of hard to pin. When you say to the customer, we want the box to be connected, we want developers to know that the cloud is there. We're really not trying to make up some phony thing," said Penello.

"But there are so many things that the servers can do. Using our Azure cloud servers, sometimes it's things like voice processing. It could be more complicated things like rendering full games like a Gaikai and delivering it to the box. We just have to figure out how, over time, how much does that cost to deliver, how good is the experience."

In the meantime, Best Buy recently announced plans to offer gamers who purchase Xbox 360 versions of five titles launching this fall the chance to upgrade to the Xbox One version for as low as $9.99. You can find details about that right here.