Gaming Beat Windows As Microsoft’s 3rd Biggest Business In Q2 FY24

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Abiyan

At Tech4gamers, I cover all sorts of gaming news. Whether it’s a leak of any upcoming game or an update, an announcement, or a rumour, I like to write about it all. Over the weekend, I sit and write features where I talk about games that I miss or want to see return.

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Xbox has leaped to new heights after its merger with Activision Blizzard. The publisher has been releasing great exclusives, overtaking rivals like PlayStation in terms of sheer quantity.

Its latest figures are a testament to the current position of Xbox. Not only has Microsoft reported record figures for its gaming business in FY24 Q2, but it has also confirmed that gaming overtook Windows to become its third-biggest business.

Why it matters: This is a far cry from several years ago. At one point, Microsoft considered shutting down Xbox altogether, but the gaming business has now bounced back.

As noted by The Verge, Microsoft has recently revealed intriguing stats about its company.

The company has made over $62 billion in revenue, with net income coming out to around $21.9 billion in FY24 Q2. Compared to last year, the revenue went up by 18%, and net income increased by 33%.

While most of the revenue has been made by Office and cloud services, which contributed to nearly 60% of all the numbers, gaming has now become an integral part of Microsoft’s business.

Microsoft has made around $7.11 billion from gaming. On the other hand, around $5.26 billion in revenue came from Windows. Therefore, gaming pulled ahead by a significant margin.

CEO Satya Nadella also commented on this progress, pointing to the rapid of growth of Xbox and Microsoft’s gaming endeavors following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

He pointed out that Xbox reached 200 million monthly active users last quarter. Satya Nadella said:

“We now have 200 million monthly active users.”

Xbox content and services revenue, which also includes its gaming subscription, Game Pass, is up by 61%. As such, this sector also saw a net positive impact after the merger.

Microsoft also confirmed new details about the merger in its report. While the transaction was said to cost $68.7 billion, it ended up being valued at around $75.4 billion.

However, if the gaming business continues to see such rapid progress, this transaction will be more than worth it for Microsoft. Meanwhile, Game Pass has not slowed down either, with analysts predicting it reached around 33 million subscribers.

Overall, Microsoft’s investments in the gaming industry are finally bringing major results. Focusing on a widespread ecosystem may have been an incredible move, allowing Xbox to pull away from the restrictions of consoles.

With major publishers like Bethesda Softworks and Activision Blizzard at its side, Xbox has reached a new level of importance for Microsoft.

Abiyan

[News Reporter]

Abiyan is on track to complete his Computer Science bachelor’s degree. His enthusiasm for writing and gaming motivates him to keep readers and gamers updated with the latest information from the industry. In his free time, Abiyan enjoys playing Dota 2 and Rocket League. Abiyan has also been cited in reputed websites such as Kitguru, Comicbook, GamingBible, Eurogamer and Gamingbolt.