The latest Microsoft earnings call regarding the fiscal year 2021 Q2 earnings regarding all things Microsoft including some new news and numbers regarding Xbox. While talking about the gaming division, CEO Satya Nadella talked about Xbox Series X|S and said that “the launch of Xbox Series X and Series S was the most successful in our history with the most devices ever sold in a launch month.” The earnings call also revealed some new numbers regarding Xbox Game Pass subscriptions which have reached 18 million.
For the first time, Microsoft and Xbox surpassed 5 billion in revenue. They also exceeded $2 billion in revenue from third-party titles during the quarter. Microsoft has also revealed that Xbox Live has more than 100 million monthly active users. Speaking of Xbox Live, Microsoft made some news after announcing a price increase to Xbox Live Gold. After backlash regarding the announcement, Microsoft rolled back the new prices and also announced that they would no longer be requiring Xbox Live Gold for free-to-play games. Xbox was the only platform that required a multiplayer subscription for free-to-play games like Fortnite.
Gaming revenue increased 51% and 50% in constant currency. Xbox hardware revenue grew 86% driven by the launch of Xbox Series X|S and the lower price promotions for the prior generation consoles. Xbox content and services revenue grew 40% and 38% in constant currency the strong growth in third-party transactions, Game Pass subscribers, and first-party titles. Segment gross margin dollars increased 11% and 9% in constant currency and gross margin percentage decreased 2 points year-over-year driven by sales mix shift to gaming.
Microsoft and Xbox aren’t the only ones who had a record-breaking launch. Sony and PlayStation have also broken some records. PlayStation 5 had the biggest launch month in U.S. history, the biggest launch in the U.K, and 3.4 million units were shipped in the first 4 weeks, which is the highest ever for a PlayStation console.