Microsoft’s Xbox Live General Manager, Marc Whitten recently spoke with Venture Beat about many different things related to Xbox live.  One of the topics that was brought up was the recent banning spree.  It had been reported that Microsoft had banned 1 million people form xbox live during the dropping of the hammer.  Mr. Whitten says different.

We didn’t release the number. I cannot explain to you why people would think it was a million people. It wasn’t a million people. Check the veracity of that claim. It was one news source. I think we do a really good job understanding what people are doing on the system. That applies to intellectual property (piracy) and how we treat the community in terms of harassment. We are committed to making it better and better.

So according to Whitten who is the Xbox Live General Manager, 1 million people have not been banned.  Although an official number was never really released, it is clear that Microsoft has been hard at work banning anyone violating the TOS.  It does make one wonder how many people have really been banned.  If somehow by the power of the gaming news gods we can get a number, we will let you know.