Microsoft says Xbox has ‘taken market share globally for two quarters in a row’

Microsoft has claimed that strong Xbox Series X/S sales have seen the company capture market share for two consecutive quarters.

On Tuesday the company’s gaming business posted record revenue for a non-holiday quarter.

Gaming revenue was up 6% year-over-year to $3.74 billion, the company said.

“With our Xbox Series X and S consoles, we have taken share globally for two quarters in a row,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said during the company’s third quarter earnings call.

“And we are the market leader this quarter among the next-gen consoles in the United States, Canada, the UK and western Europe.”

Xbox had its best March on record last month in the US, both in terms of consoles sold and dollar sales, according to NPD Group. Xbox Series X/S was also the best-selling console platform of the first quarter in dollars, the market research firm reported on Monday.

Xbox Series sales in Europe were higher than those of PS5 for the first time in February, and Xbox Series X/S were the top-selling consoles in the UK in March.

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Microsoft reports ‘best non-holiday quarter ever’ for Xbox revenue

Xbox hardware, content and services revenue were all up in the third quarter

While Xbox Series X/S and PS5 have been available for nearly 18 months, both continue to suffer from stock issues as a result of a global chip shortage, although recently Microsoft’s consoles have been more readily available than Sony’s.

Looking ahead to the fourth quarter during Microsoft’s earnings call, chief financial officer Amy Hood said: “In gaming, we expect revenue to decline in the mid to high single digits driven by lower engagement hours year-over-year as well as constrained console supply.

“We expect Xbox content and services revenue to decline mid-single digits though engagement hours are expected to remain higher than pre-pandemic levels.”