Microsoft has confirmed that the Xbox Game Pass has millions of subscribers and that there are now nearly 90 million active Xbox Live users. That’s huge news for the company, which is looking to make a very important next-gen shift in the coming months. The Xbox Series X release date has been set for before the end of 2020, and Microsoft is also preparing to launch the Project xCloud streaming service.
And Xbox Game Pass will be equally important for both console and the new services, as confirmed by the tech giant in 2019:
“We will also add game streaming from the cloud to Xbox Game Pass. Gamers will be free to discover, choose, and play their favorite games anywhere and everywhere.”
So how popular is the Xbox Game Pass and how many people are active in using Xbox Live?
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella had this to say about the current Xbox One situation revealing during a conference call:
“People everywhere are turning to gaming to sustain human connection while practising social distancing and we continue to deliver new exclusive first and third-party content to attract and retain gamers.
“We saw all-time record engagement this quarter with nearly 90 million active users of Xbox Live led by the strength on and off consoles.
“Xbox Game Pass has more than 10 million subscribers and we’re seeing increased monetization of in-game content and services.
“And our project xCloud gaming service now has hundreds of thousands of users in preview across seven countries with eight more launching in the coming weeks.”
It was also confirmed that Microsoft’s third-quarter gaming revenue declined by 1% year-over-year to $2.35 billion, while Xbox hardware revenue fell 20%.
The upside is that while console prices have dropped on the Xbox One, Xbox content and services revenue grew 2% ($33 million).
Xbox chief Phil Spencer revealed that there has been a surge in new customers that are new to gaming.
“We track what we call ‘new to Xbox customers,’ — new to gaming customers — people that we’re seeing for the first time,” Spencer revealed to Business Insider. “And we’re seeing a big flood of new people come into gaming.”
Adding: “Our opportunity is to stand on our principles and our values and be there when our customers need us,” he said.
“We want to be very thoughtful and not exploiting the situation. We’re not putting in place any different business tactics or other things.
“We’re just trying to keep all the services up, trying to keep the games enjoyable, keeping our networks safe and secure. And being there at a time of need. I’m proud that we can provide this activity for people.”
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