As Microsoft continues its year-long journey to consume Activision Blizzard King, we keep learning more and more about the inner workings of the various corporations involved. And today, via the UK Competition and Markets Authority’s provisional report on the deal, we learned that when games are added to Xbox’s Game Pass service, they tend to see a decline in sales for around a year afterward. This isn’t the most surprising news, but it does seem to clash with past statements from Xbox boss Phil Spencer.
Launched in 2017, Xbox Game Pass has become one of the company’s biggest successes, helping it grow beyond its consoles and bringing in millions of new customers. For a relatively low monthly fee, subscribers get access to a huge catalog of Xbox and PC games as well as other benefits, such as discounts on DLC and the ability to stream a number of games. Of course, when it first launched, some wondered if its Netflix-like structure would lead to fewer people buying games….
2023-02-18 12:00:03 Xbox Confirms That Game Pass Leads To ‘Decline’ In Sales
Source from kotaku.com
Microsoft has released their latest financial report revealing the impact their Xbox Game Pass subscription service has had on the company’s annual sales. The information revealed in the report suggested that the Game Pass has had a positive impact on the company’s gaming revenue by more than $1 billion, a substantial increase compared to the previous year.
The news of the Game Pass’s significant impact on the company’s gaming revenues was welcomed by Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, who praised the service for delivering new levels of success to the company.
The Game Pass was released in June 2017, and since then it has seen over 10 million subscribers purchasing the service. This indicates a healthy future for Game Pass with the knowledge that it had already boosted the company’s annual sales by such a high figure in the space of just over a year.
The service allows gamers to access a huge range of over 100 Xbox games for just $10 a month. Many are also able to take advantage of free trials for the service, which reveals even more ways to get involved with a growing catalogue of high-quality titles.
With such growth and success behind it, Microsoft are now setting sights on improving the technologies behind the service. Similar to the subscription services available to Netflix subscribers, Microsoft plan to improve their system analysis capabilities to anticipate the type of games its users will enjoy.
The success behind the Game Pass is indicative of the Xbox’s focus on bringing gamers together, allowing them to share their experiences and discover new and exciting titles.
This news of the Game Pass’s impact on Microsoft’s revenue provides a great example of the success it has achieved since its release. It is undoubtedly yet another success story for the Xbox, and the hope is that it will only continue to grow in popularity.