What you need to know
- Microsoft has detailed its FY21 Q3 earnings, reporting $41.7 billion company-wide revenue, with gaming revenue for the quarter up 50% year-over-year.
- Xbox hardware revenue also increased 232% thanks to Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, while content and services revenue boomed 34% throughout the quarter.
Microsoft announced its third-quarter earnings for its 2021 fiscal year on Tuesday, reporting a 19% increase in revenue year-over-year, clocking in at $41.7 billion. The company also demonstrated steady growth for its gaming portfolio this quarter, with revenue up 50% over the same period in 2020, attributed to a steady uptick across the complete Xbox portfolio.
The latest Q3 FY21 results come almost six months following Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S; its two latest hardware launches kickstarting a new console cycle. High demand for the latest devices, still regularly out of stock among retailers worldwide, pushed hardware revenue up 232%. Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S availability remains constrained by ongoing chip shortages, further amplified by interest in the new console family.
Xbox content and services also saw a 34% increase this quarter, attributed to success from both Microsoft-published first-party titles and third-party releases. Microsoft also reports Xbox Game Pass subscriptions, its Netflix-style subscription service for Xbox, PC, and cloud gaming, among services driving increased revenue. While Microsoft is yet to report new member numbers for Xbox Game Pass, it previously announced 18 million active subscribers in January 2021.
The latest earnings following a solid year for Microsoft's gaming lineup, with current world events and stay-at-home orders seeing gaming demand skyrocket. That contrasts this time last year during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, where gaming revenue fell 1% year over year, while content and services grew just 2%. It came as Xbox services saw "record numbers," pushing the company to disable Xbox Live features to streamline its moderation processes.
