Halo: Reach and Xbox 360 Help Microsoft Achieve 'Record First-Quarter Results'
Aside from moneymaking staples Windows and Office, Microsoft's Xbox 360 was cited as a strong provider of dolla-dolla bills. Sales of the console, Microsoft notes, are up 38 percent over the same quarter last year, reminding everyone within earshot (once again) that the Xbox 360 has been "outselling every competing console in the U.S. for each of the last four months."
Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Devision (EDD)--the group responsible for the Xbox 360, Zune, and Windows Phone 7) saw a 33 percent increase in revenue versus the same period in 2010, totaling $409 million.
Shipments of the Xbox 360 have also jumped, shifting from 2.8 million units in this quarter versus the 2.1 million units it sent to retailers last year. According to the report, sales and marketing expenses for the EDD jumped 27% ($39M) this year, due "mainly" to "increased Xbox 360 platform marketing activities."
Clearly the spending worked, as Bungie's multi-Spartan epic Halo: Reach achieved $350 million in sales between its release and the 17 following its launch--since the period ended at the end of the same month.
So, that settles it: Next up, Halo: Kart Racing.
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Dr_Cube
replyThey would be so much further ahead if they hadn't screwed the pooch with the RROD. They really gave their competition a big boost, especially overseas, when Sony was on the ropes. The Xbox effort is still billions in the hole since they got into the console business but at least they've got a solid consumer entertainment brand to show for it (one of the few bright spots amongst their consumer business). More importantly, they've got the Xbox Live subscriber base going forward. They were right to charge for Xbox Live from the get go, and yes I know you can usually find $10 or $20 off the asking price, but I won't pay much higher than the $60 annual tithe for Gold status unless they give me something I can really use like Xbox Live cloud/server side storage for my save game files. I hope Kinect works because I consider it much more innovative and a much more worthy attempt at moving the industry forward than Sony's Move.
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If history is any indicator MS shouldn't rest easy thinking it's in the bag regarding the competition. For all the billions they've poured into the Xbox gaming division it can all be undone in one or two generations. They haven't shown the abilty to dominate a market that already has strong brands in place(for example the portable media player, smart phones, browser, search engine, etc.). This division of market share among the MS, Nintendo, and Sony is fine by me - none can take advantage of having a monopoly.
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