Source: A listing on Microsoft's official jobs Web site...which has since been pulled.

　　What we heard: Though the Wii and PlayStation 3 are catching up, the most popular online gaming service remains Xbox Live. Despite requiring users to pay a subscription fee ($7.99 for one month, $19.99 for three months, or $49.99 for one year in the US) to play against others online, the service has seen massive growth. First introduced in September 2002 on the original Xbox, Xbox Live now boasts over 10 million paying and non-paying subscribers, as revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show in May.

　　The Xbox Live service is updated twice a year via spring and fall updates to the Xbox 360's firmware. However, this week, an innocuous-looking job listing for a "Program Manager" on Microsoft's own Web site may have revealed a much more drastic redesign is in the offing. The listing asks applicants the following burning question: "Want to be involved in the next release of Xbox? Join the server-backed games team, part of the Xbox LIVE team that's responsible for creating a completely new way for mainstream audiences to enjoy the Xbox and LIVE."

　　Were the suggestion of the next version of Xbox not enough, the listing also contained hints of a new way games will be integrated into the service. "We're building the games, the console interface and logic, and the server support for a totally new LIVE experience. Both the games and the dashboard experience will be deeply paired with dynamic server support to create a compelling, fresh scenario each time." According to the ad, the project in question has been assigned to "a small, entrepreneurial team working together to get things done very quickly in an agile environment."

　　The official story: After the ad was quickly yanked down, all a Microsoft rep would say is "We have nothing further to share at this time."

　　Bogus or not bogus?: Given the pedigree of the source and Microsoft's cryptic answer, this looks not bogus. However, many questions remain: What exactly will the new Xbox Live look like? When will it be implemented? Exactly how will the games and dashboard be integrated? Perhaps Microsoft's corporate vice president John Schappert, who runs the Xbox Live unit, will provide some answers during his keynote speech tomorrow at the 2008 Game Developers Conference.

　　[UPDATE] One clue may have surfaced this morning, when Microsoft Casual chief Chris Early hinted that a major announcement related to "asynchronous play" between Windows and Xbox Live and Microsoft-backed mobile devices would be made during Schappert's keynote speech.

　　[UPDATE 2] On February 20, Schappert unveiled a massive new Community Gaming program at GDC which will let indepedent developers create and upload their own games onto Xbox Live.