Investing in Xbox
Microsoft separately reported that total Xbox sales are now up to 15.5 million units since the console's launch three years ago, at the high end of company estimates. Xbox continued to gain market share in North America, now accounting for a third of the market. Globally and in North America, that market continues to be dominated by Sony's PlayStation 2.
Robbie Bach, senior vice president in Microsoft's Xbox division, attributed the gains to a strong selection of games, a recent price cut and growing support for the Xbox Live online gaming service, which recently hit 1 million subscribers.
Microsoft expects to ship another 5 million Xbox units during the new fiscal year. Upcoming releases of several high-profile games--including the November launch of the sequel to all-time Xbox top-seller "Halo"--are expected to buoy sales.
"What you have to factor in is how much of a cultural phenomenon 'Halo 2' will become," Bach said. "It's our belief this is going to be one of those entertainment properties that get out into the marketplace in a broad way."
The earnings report also highlights Microsoft's continuing subsidizing of Xbox hardware, a situation Bach said nobody's in a hurry to change. "We've been in an investment mode, where we sell consoles at a loss," he said. "We can be profitable soon if we want to, but we'd have to slow the rate of customer acquisition down a bit, and that is not the way we want to go now."
http://news.com.com/Microsoft+earnings+paint+mixed+picture/2100-7343_3-5280372.html?tag=nefd.top
Edit: Please merge with the other thread.
Microsoft separately reported that total Xbox sales are now up to 15.5 million units since the console's launch three years ago, at the high end of company estimates. Xbox continued to gain market share in North America, now accounting for a third of the market. Globally and in North America, that market continues to be dominated by Sony's PlayStation 2.
Robbie Bach, senior vice president in Microsoft's Xbox division, attributed the gains to a strong selection of games, a recent price cut and growing support for the Xbox Live online gaming service, which recently hit 1 million subscribers.
Microsoft expects to ship another 5 million Xbox units during the new fiscal year. Upcoming releases of several high-profile games--including the November launch of the sequel to all-time Xbox top-seller "Halo"--are expected to buoy sales.
"What you have to factor in is how much of a cultural phenomenon 'Halo 2' will become," Bach said. "It's our belief this is going to be one of those entertainment properties that get out into the marketplace in a broad way."
The earnings report also highlights Microsoft's continuing subsidizing of Xbox hardware, a situation Bach said nobody's in a hurry to change. "We've been in an investment mode, where we sell consoles at a loss," he said. "We can be profitable soon if we want to, but we'd have to slow the rate of customer acquisition down a bit, and that is not the way we want to go now."
http://news.com.com/Microsoft+earnings+paint+mixed+picture/2100-7343_3-5280372.html?tag=nefd.top
Edit: Please merge with the other thread.
