Xbox Goes Big With Their New User Records, As Microsoft Reports Drop In Xbox Sales And Gaming Revenue
We did get something very valuable though: New MAU data.
— Derek Strickland (@DeekeTweak) January 24, 2023
Nadella says Xbox MAUs were at 120 million, which is a new all-time high.
Before now, Microsoft hadn't reported Xbox monthly active user numbers for quite some time. pic.twitter.com/ilSzsnAJvj
Microsoft has reported a drop in Xbox sales and gaming revenue, despite setting new user records in new MAU (monthly active users) for the Xbox platform (a record of 120 million).
Microft has pointed out that, both hardware and content sales lagged for Xbox compared to the same period the previous year, with console revenue down 13% and content and services down 12%. This is in comparison to what they achieved in the previous year. This is due to the declines in first-party content and lower magnetization in third-party content. This was also due to offset of Xbox Game Pass’s continued growth.
The latest consoles by Microsoft, the Xbox Series X, and Series S released in 2020 had initially high demand but in the financial quarter, revenue from console sales dropped 13%, with Microsoft pointing to lower pricing over the holiday period, as well as an overall drop in the number of consoles sold.
This report comes after a major round of layoffs involving 10,000 staff across Microsoft’s various divisions, and makes note of $800 million in severance costs relating to this action. Combined with other costs related to the downsizing, the layoffs cost Microsoft an estimated $1.2 billion.
Post all this, Microsoft is still looking to acquire gaming company Activision Blizzard in a deal worth $68.7 billion, despite facing regulatory hurdles and antitrust concerns.
