But even if the "unnamed source" is wrong about the 3 minute disconnection, the creative director's comments seem to indicate that "always on" is true, regardless of how it's implemented.

My main point still remains that "always on" for a console is a mistake (at this point in time), in whatever form it takes.

Of course, if the console ends up not having it (or if MS comes out and explicitly denies it) , then great, good on them for not doing it. Until then though, "always on" is not a good business decision.