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[Shmunter]

Calling bollox.

Xbox would have announced what would almost be a doubling of subs, not keep it secret. Furthermore, post lockdown sub increase? See trend in all other sub based services, covid sugar rush, followed by a sharp downturn.

 

[Jemm]

Now that the rumor is at 30M, Microsoft will publish the subscription count in the next earnings report, only if it is at least that 30 million.
Anything less than that would make them look bad in the reports/PR. Then it would be better to just keep their mouth shut - even if the number was like 29M.

I guess this happened when the 22 million (the "Jez-rumor") was circulating. Game Pass didn't have that many then, so they didn't publish the subscription count at all.

Personally I think 30M is very optimistic and 25M would be more realistic, but what do I know.

 

[TBiddy]

Not true. I'm in the UK and use it without any issue whatsoever. Try again.

Skip the passive aggressiveness.

I googled Microsoft Rewards and it said that it was available everywhere in the US, except Puerto Rico.

Turns out the information wasn't complete, since this is the full list of supported countries:

Microsoft Rewards is now available in the US, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Italy, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

i use it in the uk

Yeah, turns out I was wrong - see above.

 

[phil_t98]

Calling bollox.

Xbox would have announced what would almost be a doubling of subs, not keep it secret. Furthermore, post lockdown sub increase? See trend in all other sub based services, covid sugar rush, followed by a sharp downturn.

post lockdown people are earning their normal incomes so why wouldn't it increase?

 

[Topher]

post lockdown people are earning their normal incomes so why wouldn't it increase?

If the lockdown was the reason for the surge in subs and people are not in lockdown anymore then the number of subs could actually decrease. That is what happened with PS+ subs as well.

https://screenrant.com/ps-plus-subscription-numbers-down/

 

[phil_t98]

If the lockdown was the reason for the surge in subs and people are not in lockdown anymore then the number of subs could actually decrease. That is what happened with PS+ subs as well.

yeah but as I said a lot of people were not earning their usual incomes and the fact there was a surge during lockdown could of lead to other subbing once they returned to normal pay

 

[Larlight]

Press X for Doubt.

 

[MonarchJT]

3rd party moneyhatted exclusives are a thing though, like deathloop, tomb raider, ghostwire, stalker 2, final catastrophe etc etc.

Even the majority of sonys revenue comes from other things like ps+, dlc and microtransactions.

Its why I dont understand why sony dont include there first party day and date on ps now. They would make more money.

I'm sure they will announce something similir in the next 1 - 1.5 year

 

[Outrunner]

 

[Topher]

yeah but as I said a lot of people were not earning their usual incomes and the fact there was a surge during lockdown could of lead to other subbing once they returned to normal pay

Both scenarios could happen concurrently but which has had more impact is anyone's guess. Simple fact of the matter is MS was much more eager to share subscription numbers during the lockdown than they have after the lockdown. That doesn't suggest to me a rise in the number but I could be wrong.

The "host interviewing" didn't say that at all.

 

[wolffy71]

You would think they would be low to mid 20 mil, at the most, right now. The guy may have just been messing around with Spencer.

 

[phil_t98]

Both scenarios could happen concurrently but which has had more impact is anyone's guess. Simple fact of the matter is MS was much more eager to share subscription numbers during the lockdown than they have after the lockdown. That doesn't suggest to me a rise in the number but I could be wrong.

well look at Disney+ as an example, because of lockdown they had more subscribers than they thought they would get, then as lockdowns ended they just keep growing to the point where they will threaten Netflix type numbers

 

[ZehDon]

If anyone might have a clue outside of Microsoft, it would be the CEO of Take Two - a company who's had two monster games on Gamepass already.

Spencer not wanting to confirm the numbers doesn't do much to diminish the possibility for me, this is the kind of slipup a CEO of a partner company might make in a light-hearted chat. I suspect the actual number wouldn't be too far off of it in any case - 28-29 million wouldn't be out of the realm of possibilities in my eyes.

 

[Topher]

well look at Disney+ as an example, because of lockdown they had more subscribers than they thought they would get, then as lockdowns ended they just keep growing to the point where they will threaten Netflix type numbers

Yep. Companies like to highlight the numbers when they are rising.

 

[Godot25]

That revenue is shared with all the developers and publishers who have games on the service. So that revenue doesn't mean much as far as profitability. Obviously MS expects it to be profitable at some point, but Greenberg has said it is not, at this point at least.

And he said it when? in July 2020 when service had maybe 15 million less subs?

 

[StreetsofBeige]

You would think they would be low to mid 20 mil, at the most, right now. The guy may have just been messing around with Spencer.

I agree on that estimate. Jan was 18M (about 4 years worth). So ok in 8 months and some new first party games coming out soon I can see it in that range tops.

 

[phil_t98]

Yep. Companies like to highlight the numbers when they are rising.

microsoft don't have a track record for releasing numbers though, twice they have done it. so its not a thing they regally do, I mean Sony don't shout about the PSnow numbers either

 

[KingT731]

microsoft don't have a track record for releasing numbers though, twice they have done it. so its not a thing they regally do, I mean Sony don't shout about the PSnow numbers either

Sony actually does lol. No matter how low they are.

 

[phil_t98]

Sony actually does lol. No matter how low they are.

when was the last offcial number for snow then?

 

[Topher]

And he said it when? in July 2020 when service had maybe 15 million less subs?

True. Could be it is making money now. We don't know. Certainly don't know enough to compare profitability to other models.

microsoft don't have a track record for releasing numbers though, twice they have done it. so its not a thing they regally do, I mean Sony don't shout about the PSnow numbers either

Yes, they do. MS released GP numbers twice during the lockdown and again this past January.

 

[reksveks]

Sony actually does lol. No matter how low they are.

when was the last offcial number for snow then?

Thought they did include psnow in the supplementary docs but they don't, it's only psnow.

 

[phil_t98]

True. Could be it is making money now. We don't know. Certainly don't know enough to compare profitability to other models.



Yes, they do. MS released numbers twice during the lockdown and again this past January.

and how long Gamepass been going? twice is not consistent. there were reports back in April that it had risen to 23mill subs but never confirmed

 

[KingT731]

when was the last offcial number for snow then?

Last official number was 3.2M from May.

 

[Topher]

and how long Gamepass been going? twice is not consistent. there were reports back in April that it had risen to 23mill subs but never confirmed

Three times since April 2020. If you don't think that is consistent then that is up to you. Seems fairly consistent to me. Hopefully we will get new numbers at the next earnings call.

 

[Jemm]

From the thread (reaching much?):

 

[Godot25]

Well its cheap.

The real question is, how long until Microsoft starts increase the price again?

Its good for consumer of course.

I personally would like to see the actual earnings/profits on gamepass alone, so far Microsoft has yet to shown any.

I mean...numbers of subscription doesnt speak much when its cheap. You can have 100m subs but each person pays less than 10 dollars averagely still doesnt seem alot.

Tbh even if Microsoft raised the price (currently 12,99€ in my region) I would say "crap" but I wouldn't cancel the sub. It's such a great value, that even for 20€ per month it is worth it.

But that's just me. Microsoft probably can tell the effect of raising prices to number of subs.

 

[Godot25]

Calling bollox.

Xbox would have announced what would almost be a doubling of subs, not keep it secret. Furthermore, post lockdown sub increase? See trend in all other sub based services, covid sugar rush, followed by a sharp downturn.

You sure? Because for example number of PS Plus subs started dropping last quarter

"PlayStation Plus subscribers rose year-on-year from 45 million to 46.3 million, but this is down from Q4's 47.6 millon."

 

[Shmunter]

post lockdown people are earning their normal incomes so why wouldn't it increase?

The electronics market saw record sales during covid. People with money but nowhere to spend it put it towards entertaining themselves at home. Not many lost their livelihood, in 1st world countries many benefited from mass stimulus, reduction in interest rates and all sorts of freezes on repayments.

It's throughout the board, retail, supply and digital. Coming out of lockdown all these sectors saw a decline as people started taking their dollars outside of the home and/or lost their income which was till then supported by gov intervention.

 

[Sosokrates]

Doubtful. You can get PS Now for less than the price of a single game.

But ps being as strong as it is if they rebranded + relaunched ps now and added first party day one, they would likely get 30million subs in a matter of months. Sony does not get anywhere close to $3.6 billion from its exclusive game sales per year, in 2018 say ps4 exclusives sound around 40 million, and sony made an average of $35 per game sold thats only $1.4 billion revenue.

If sony had 30 million subs paying $10/month thats $3.6 billion revenue with no extra expenses.

 

[Team Andromeda]

No surprise. Game Pass has been a blessing during lockdown and more and more people can now see the value in the brilliant service

 

[ZywyPL]

well look at Disney+ as an example, because of lockdown they had more subscribers than they thought they would get, then as lockdowns ended they just keep growing to the point where they will threaten Netflix type numbers

I think the continuous growth was mostly driven but the continuous supply of new content, mainly SW and MCU which both have a HUGE following, rather than lockdown itself. Because lockdown or not, people wouldn't subscribe if there was nothing interesting to watch on it.

So translating that on the rumored possible GP growth, maybe that E3 presentation did have that snowballing effect, people saw what games are coming, about Bethesda games, and soon after the service started delivering game after game, on a weekly basis basically. As of today there are about ~50M XB consoles combined out there, plus the potential of PC market, so who knows, maybe GP indeed started to rapidly grow.

 

[Ozriel]

I think all sub services are shit.

This is a poor position to take, since all subscription services in the console gaming space are optional. Games will always be sold at retail.

We will never know what the balance sheet on this whole project looks like. Just give up on that.

What we do know is that its a massive investment and Microsoft are finally spending some real money. My only question is there a time frame/expiration date for this push or is this just going to be their normal position towards gaming.



Its amazing to think that xbox has never been taken seriously and it somehow survived? Its upgraded to "central" now, let's just enjoy whatever that means.

We know what that means. More investments etc, like the Bethesda deal and the massive investment in azure xCloud streaming.
Phil Spencer is also now directly reporting to Satya.

MS took Xbox serious MANY years ago. People that say otherwise are lying to you.

not nearly as serious as they're taking it now.

 

[Ozriel]

I think the continuous growth was mostly driven but the continuous supply of new content, mainly SW and MCU which both have a HUGE following, rather than lockdown itself. Because lockdown or not, people wouldn't subscribe if there was nothing interesting to watch on it.

So translating that on the rumored possible GP growth, maybe that E3 presentation did have that snowballing effect, people saw what games are coming, about Bethesda games, and soon after the service started delivering game after game, on a weekly basis basically. As of today there are about ~50M XB consoles combined out there, plus the potential of PC market, so who knows, maybe GP indeed started to rapidly grow.

Why does everyone forget that Outriders and MLB launched on Gamepass? Those were big entries. Also xCloud launch + improved availability.
Same way most of the conversation is around Forza Horizon 5 and Halo, but there's certainly people who will sign up for Back4Blood.

 

[freefornow]

From the thread (reaching much?):

Gee, i saw that and went straight to MS buying Sega as the shirt/jacket combo looks sonic (remember the reach that some went to when color matching the blue xbox controller!).
What day is it?

Edit: dammit, P Pantz already picked this up in the Sega acquisition thread,

 

[Topher]

But ps being as strong as it is if they rebranded + relaunched ps now and added first party day one, they would likely get 30million subs in a matter of months. Sony does not get anywhere close to $3.6 billion from its exclusive game sales per year, in 2018 say ps4 exclusives sound around 40 million, and sony made an average of $35 per game sold thats only $1.4 billion revenue.

If sony had 30 million subs paying $10/month thats $3.6 billion revenue with no extra expenses.

A subscription does not negate development costs. And to make that subscription worth keeping all year it has to have more than just Sony exclusives. That means enticing third party just like Microsoft does with Game Pass. So suddenly Sony are sharing that $10 a month with a lot of others and they are not getting to keep anything close to $3.6 billion in revenue. If the sub was just for Sony exclusives then there is nothing stopping folks from subbing for a month playing the game and then dropping the sub.

 

[DavidGzz]

30 was expected by now. Gains of 1-1.5 mil a month.

 

[Chukhopops]

As a side note with AI:The Somnium Files and Scarlet Nexus being added today that's a total of 21 games added this month just for Console.
Making it the largest month ever for GP and again a clear sign that the service is not slowing down at all.

 

[DavidGzz]

I mean if they hit 30 million would they not have made an official public announcement by now?

What about 20 and 25? What number was the last announcement at? I think Sony could catch up pretty quickly if they decided to release all of their big titles day 1 on PS Now. I know I'd sub instantly. MS playing the quiet game when it comes to GP success to get a big lead?

 

[Mr Reasonable]

I think the continuous growth was mostly driven but the continuous supply of new content, mainly SW and MCU which both have a HUGE following, rather than lockdown itself. Because lockdown or not, people wouldn't subscribe if there was nothing interesting to watch on it.

Sorry, that's just unrealistic. Lockdown was a huge boost for all home entertainment. Consoles, streaming services especially.

 

[Topher]

What about 20 and 25? What number was the last announcement at? I think Sony could catch up pretty quickly if they decided to release all of their big titles day 1 on PS Now. I know I'd sub instantly. MS playing the quiet game when it comes to GP success to get a big lead?

MS announced 18 million in January. Nothing since.

 

[Thirty7ven]

Big doubt, and until MS announces new number of active numbers, it's all questionable.

 

[phil_t98]

The electronics market saw record sales during covid. People with money but nowhere to spend it put it towards entertaining themselves at home. Not many lost their livelihood, in 1st world countries many benefited from mass stimulus, reduction in interest rates and all sorts of freezes on repayments.

It's throughout the board, retail, supply and digital. Coming out of lockdown all these sectors saw a decline as people started taking their dollars outside of the home and/or lost their income which was till then supported by gov intervention.

a lot did have reductions in their lively hood though, here in the UK we lost 20% of our wages during lockdowns and that's a huge chunk go money. so while some many not go been effect many were

 

[NickFire]

a lot did have reductions in their lively hood though, here in the UK we lost 20% of our wages during lockdowns and that's a huge chunk go money. so while some many not go been effect many were

I don't think anyone's denying that. He is right though about the pandemic causing gaming related surges that will be temporary for a good chunk of people. There will definitely be people that keep or sign up for the first time in the "new reality", but I personally would not count on the return to work being a significant driver in the short term. In your country for instance, people may be getting that 20% back, but I bet they will also spend way more than 20% extra hours away from the home after lockdowns are over. And in the US, which is a very large market, the truth is a lot of people are now going to be job searching since the extended benefits are over, and inflation is going bananas.

 

[ZywyPL]

Sorry, that's just unrealistic. Lockdown was a huge boost for all home entertainment. Consoles, streaming services especially.

But then again, they would go to Netflix, Youtube, Twitch etc. to fill the time instead of paying for Disney+ with no content. And vice versa - even if Covid never happened, pumping out series from SW and MCU a.k.a. one of the most popular franchises on the planet on a monthly basis would also yield to increased userbase no matter what.

 

[phil_t98]

I don't think anyone's denying that. He is right though about the pandemic causing gaming related surges that will be temporary for a good chunk of people. There will definitely be people that keep or sign up for the first time in the "new reality", but I personally would not count on the return to work being a significant driver in the short term. In your country for instance, people may be getting that 20% back, but I bet they will also spend way more than 20% extra hours away from the home after lockdowns are over. And in the US, which is a very large market, the truth is a lot of people are now going to be job searching since the extended benefits are over, and inflation is going bananas.

I agree but with more people signing up during the pandemic that gets more people talking about it. word of mouth is about the best advertising you can get these days, so it all helps

 

[Kagey K]

As a side note with AI:The Somnium Files and Scarlet Nexus being added today that's a total of 21 games added this month just for Console.
Making it the largest month ever for GP and again a clear sign that the service is not slowing down at all.

1st I'm hearing about these 2 additions.

I already have too much to play, but really eyed Scarlett Nexus a couple times.

Great news.

 

[mckmas8808]

I would pay 15$ a month to watch the meltdown on GAF if MS purchased Take Two. Shit would be BIBLICAL.

Oh so you want MS to buy Take Two just for the lulz? At least you're honest.

 

[Schmick]

Oh so you want MS to buy Take Two just for the lulz? At least you're honest.

I would like to see MS buy Take Two for the lulz too. But in practicality terms no.. i would not like MS to buy Take Two.

 

[Punished Miku]

Oh so you want MS to buy Take Two just for the lulz? At least you're honest.

I don't buy any Take Two games. So for me it would be a win to get them included for no additional cost. But I doubt this is going to happen. Take Two would probably start their own service before that similar to EA Play.

 

[MonarchJT]

Now that the rumor is at 30M, Microsoft will publish the subscription count in the next earnings report, only if it is at least that 30 million.
Anything less than that would make them look bad in the reports/PR. Then it would be better to just keep their mouth shut - even if the number was like 29M.

I guess this happened when the 22 million (the "Jez-rumor") was circulating. Game Pass didn't have that many then, so they didn't publish the subscription count at all.

Personally I think 30M is very optimistic and 25M would be more realistic, but what do I know.

why? what??? 25m / 26m would be MASSIVE and investors would drools over that number
those things luckily don't work like Ms thread on gaf