220°

Xbox 360 and PS3 losses total $8 billion, ex-Sony employee paints grim future

Xbox 360 and PS3 have cost Microsoft and Sony a combined total of $8 billion, according to industry veteran Ben Cousins.

According to Cousins, Microsoft has spent some $2.996bn on Xbox 360 since it launched in 2005, while Sony has fared worse, spending $4.951 billion on PS3. Both figures are a loss, and you can see an overview of both company’s losses in Cousins’s financial table here.

Cousins, who has worked at a string of high-profile studios over the years – including Sony EA and Lionhead – has shed serious doubt on the future of the home console as we know it, citing Sony and Microsoft’s plan to sell each console at a loss as a reason for such poor fortune. It’s a poor strategy he says, as even with a combined total of 70+ million consoles sold, both companies are still losing money.

iNathan4124d ago

MS made alot of money with the 360 in the last 3 years but they lost alot in the first years on the market.

Still what really matters is that right now is making money and isnt going away anytime soon.

Next Gen will lose money at first its normal, these things will be powerfull, technology is expensive and they cant sell Consoles for 1000$. But with time, games sales, Live etc... it will make money for them.

Riderz13374123d ago

What really hurt Microsoft is the RROD. I think this time around consumers might be watching Microsoft more carefully because of the disastrous launch of the 360 which was caused by the obsession to launch ahead of the PS3.

darthv724123d ago

disastrous? generally, disasters are tough to overcome but they managed to do quite well on their 2nd outing in the console market.

Hardly what i would consider "disastrous". Problems happen but many would rather concentrate on the nature of the problem more so than the efforts put in to resolve it.

Its a matter of selective recollection. only choosing to look at bits and pieces instead of objectively looking at both the bad and good to come from it.

Riderz13374123d ago (Edited 4123d ago )

@darthv72 Yeah it was disastrous because they had to keep replacing Xbox's which is why they lost a lot of money this gen from the Xbox. Also who knows what future disasters it could have on Microsoft. Maybe people won't feel safe buying the Xbox at launch...maybe they will. Hard to determine right now.

darthv724123d ago

but i'm not the kind of person to hold a grudge if something isnt working. UNLESS there is no effort to resolve the issue.

customer service is the main thing that keeps most consumers coming back. How a situation is taken care of can actually do more for the consumer confidence than the situation itself.

My PS2 laser died a year after having the system. It cost me $150 to get it fixed and yeah i was a bit miffed but not to the point where I would chastise sony out of spite.

im a gamer first and as such I fully know the costs and risks involved with this expensive hobby. Where as many shunned MS in the event of the RROD, they made good on trying to fix it at minimal to no cost to the consumer.

Some say they HAD to but they could have charged a minimal fee of $75 if they wanted to. Hell, nintendo charged me that when the sound chip went bad on my Wii after a year. Many will hate on MS because of who they are regardless of personal experiences.

Like i said before. Problems happen but how they are handled is often times more important to the consumer.

4123d ago
morkendo234123d ago

wiil consumers REALLY pay attention this time?? or only gamers will. will people buy xbox next after seeing signs of possible RROD again we dont know.

my crystal ball say:
lets wait and see.

violents4122d ago

@ darthv72

I agree it was disatrous. A 72% failure rate cant be called anything less in the eyes of the manufacturer.

My launch Ps3 60gig lasted 6 years before it finally ylod on me. I know people that went through 3 xboxes in a week. One only lasted for like 2 hours. I would definitly consider that a massive fail.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4122d ago
dedicatedtogamers4123d ago

And yet people still say "we need better graphics! And we need more voice acting!"

The rubber band is going to snap. Most developers can't keep up with the rising cost of AAA games, and next gen will be even worse.

Plus, we don't have a strong worldwide economy. The name of the game next gen will be "profitability". Who will be able to stay in the console race? It won't come down to number of studios. It won't come down to exclusives. Heck, it won't really come down to sales, either. It will come down to how profitable each game and each console is.

Christopher4123d ago

*** It’s a poor strategy he says, as even with a combined total of 70+ million consoles sold, both companies are still losing money.***

On hardware. All companies are raking in dough on software.

You don't sell hardware to make a profit on hardware. You sell hardware to sell software.

Why do we keep getting idiotic analysis of things that don't matter on their own?

doctorstrange4123d ago

Exactly. If these consoles were such catastrophic failures as he suggest, then they wouldn't make another gen of them.

Ace Killa 084123d ago

Because the source works within the mobile market and tries to convince the reader consoles are dying while mobile market is the next way to go.

1upgamer994123d ago

Microsoft sold more after the price cut, as did Sony. Therefore once the console began to turn profit-Price was cut and the profit was no longer there. Allot of people are starting to turn away from Live, seeing as how Sony and Nintendo are not charging the premium fee. Live is great but I am not going to pay to play BOPS2 online when I do it on Wii U free. I no longer support Microsoft Xbox. PS3, Wii U, PC for me. "making money isn't going away anytime soon" Well I am not sure about that seeing as the Xbox will be launching this year, and more than likely sold at a loss. How much first party support will 360 have after this year?

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4122d ago
iNathan4124d ago

Thats must be 30 years from now.

Consoles arent going anywhere son, stop dreaming.

Belking4123d ago

They will go away but not for a while. The time will come when you won't need to buy a console to get content and game makers won't need them to deliver their software. I would love to have them forever but I know it won't be.

miyamoto4123d ago (Edited 4123d ago )

Ouya, Game Stick, NVidia and Valve have just announced their new gaming consoles and this guy spew FUD doom and gloom.

So he is saying these guys are stupid and did not do their R&D?

I bet this guy is spewing these crap for his own vested interests.

awaiting a Sony, Nintendo and M$ response...

ElectricKaibutsu4123d ago

I actually think that was his point. Those "consoles" you mentioned are really just computers that you hook up to your TV. The Ouya and Steam Box won't have a proprietary operating system like the Big 3 do. Valve said you can even install Windows on their's. As it becomes more common to hook PCs up to TVs I could see consoles becoming more niche. I'm not happy about that, btw, but it makes sense.

miyamoto4123d ago (Edited 4123d ago )

Oh and its from Kcraptaku!

I should have known!
Nothing from that site is ever positive news worth reading.

darkride66 you should have known better not to bring that garbage here on N4G

Seriously

Anon19744123d ago

It was based off a guest column from Kotaku. Generally I have zero use for Kotaku or their articles, but this wasn't from one of their in-house hacks. Ben Cousins is a developer with some impressive credentials over the years from his time with Sony, Lionhead, EA, Dice and I feel his thoughts on the issue are valid and wildly shared.

We all know that MS/Sony sells consoles at a loss, but if software doesn't make up the difference as is suggested, why would they continue to do this? MS themselves stated way back that the next gen could look nothing like this gen due to costs, stating a low-cost, digital hub may be a better alternative.

Whether we agree or not, these are the discussions that are being had behind closed doors regarding next gen. When return on investment isn't there, you have to start looking at different strategies. This gen they weren't exactly racking it in except for Nintendo, and even then their strategy with the Wii imploded quickly and may not work again.

We've seen studies indicating that the young are turning away from traditional consoles in favor of mobile apps. There's evidence for his argument all around even if you don't agree with his ultimate conclusions. If you think it's garbage, why not pick a point he makes and explain why you don't agree?

Hicken4123d ago

He HAD credentials, but now he's firmly entrenched within the mobile market, and his articles more than show what he thinks.

He- apparently- has little faith in the console market, so it's no surprise. Check out the other articles he's had published at Kotaku... if you want to bother suffering through that.

His opinion is hardly unbiased, so that makes it a lot harder to take his words at face value.

EddieNX 4123d ago

Ouch , that's pathetic. Do they even know what they're doing ? The gamecube was arguably more successfull than the os3 and 360 BECAUSE Nintendo never LOST money on it , they MADE a PROFIT on every unit and game sold.

Sony lives in dreamland trying to show off like the big man with ''UBER TECH'' when they can't even afford to deal with ''UBER TECH'' they're just lying to themselves.

It's like a car salesman buying cars for 4K and selling them for 3K . You can't afford to sell those cars like that LOL.

This is Why the PS4 and maybe 720 is going to be a dissapointment to you drones because the MOST they can do is sell it at breaking even.

Sony need to make some Money or they will be the next Sega.

I know , the truth hurts.

Nintendo is currently by far the most successfull competitor in the Video Games sector.

4123d ago Replies(2)
Show all comments (36)
220°

Microsoft’s Surface and Xbox hardware revenues take a big hit in Q3

Microsoft just posted the third quarter of its 2024 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $61.9 billion in revenue and a net income of $21.9 billion during Q3. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 20 percent.

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
darthv7217h ago

Xbox content + services up 62% while hardware down 31%... seems about right with the way they tout you don't need the hardware to play. People can play on their phones or smart tv or other means. I don't hardly play on my consoles directly since getting devices like the logitech g-cloud and ps portal. Which is to also say I have been playing more digital than physical because of these devices.

solideagle4h ago

you should apply in MS PR team buddy, I think you will do a great job in my humble opinion :)

Sonic18811h ago

I thought darthv72 and Obscure_Observer already work for Microsoft 🤔

dveio1h ago

MS: "Xbox services and content without AB up 1%, with AB up 62%. Hardware down 31%. In total a loss of 350 mill."

darthv72: "Seems about right."

MS: "Excuse m ..."

darthv72: "I don't hardly play on my consoles directly."

MS:

Cacabunga4h ago

I can tell people like you are an absolute minority..

If service is up means their fans and fanboys accepted this model and subscribed to it. The near future you will see a big decline because the service is saturated.

shinoff21833h ago

But that's been ms for years. When things aren't going their way they try to change the way things are said. For instance console sales are down, they stop telling how many sold instead telling us how many hours spent in halo or headshots. So it makes sense console sales down just say people are playing on more devices then previous. What they won't say is how many xbox players jumped ship to ps5.

Cacabunga2h ago

Hardware sales are so bad that Sony and Nintendo are blowing the sales off the water with their hardware.

If Xbox are losers, others aren’t..
Xbox already tried everything with Xbox live then subscriptions went down so much that they had to find something else. Their fans subscribed then reached saturation rather quickly.

Hardware and exclusive games is where it’s at! Keep gamers excited, announce decent software and people will support you

purple1016h ago

Xbox hardware revenue tanks to lowest point of Xbox Series generation

Profchaos6h ago

I'm not surprised surface is struggling they aren't relevant anymore

XBManiac5h ago

Too expensive hardware when others offer the same or more for less? Good work, Green Team.

SimpleDad5h ago(Edited 5h ago)

"Despite some early successes for Xbox games on rival platforms, Xbox hardware is down by a massive 31 percent this quarter."
"Without Activision Blizzard, Microsoft’s overall gaming revenue would have actually declined this quarter."
"Xbox content and services would have only been up a single percent without Activision Blizzard..."
"It looks like next quarter is going to be a similar story for gaming at Microsoft, too."

That is crazy... so A/B/K is carrying the whole Xbox gaming.
Oh and Microsoft will be fine. Windows, Office and Cloud are growing with each pc purchase.

purple1015h ago

Activision: "we gonna need a bigger rucksack/backpack please"

Microsoft: "why's that"

Activision: "to carry yo' weak ass'

Profchaos4h ago(Edited 4h ago)

Top brass have also wanted to start seeing returns on the 100 billion they have put into various Xbox related moves so seeing more multiplatform games is highly likely especially from abk

It's basically saying that PlayStation is the reason Xbox is afloat right now thinks to Ps5 versions of COD

Kornholic3h ago

So basically PS and PC gamers' money is keeping Xbox on life support.

Show all comments (21)
300°

Microsoft Seemingly Closes Bethesda France

As part of its plans to cut 1,900 jobs, Microsoft has reportedly shut down operations at Bethesda France, letting go roughly 15 people

Read Full Story >>
insider-gaming.com
Hereandthere1d 14h ago

Microsoft should have left them stay 3rd party

GamerRN1d 11h ago

If they are let go, they can be whatever they want. They ARE 3rd party now... 🤦

Barlos1d 9h ago

Yeah, they're also jobless.

GamerRN1d 2h ago

They can form a company if they want, they are just as jobless as if "Microsoft had left them as 3rd party".

peppeaccardo1d 3h ago

"MIcrosoft leaves Bethesda do what they know how to do best" ... close! Oh the irony ....
(Citation from a week old article)

ChasterMies23h ago

I think Microsoft and other game publishers are letting people go because they think ai will replace them. Doesn’t matter how much profit they make. They were always going to be let go.

PassNextquestion1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

Bethesda France was made up of roughly 15 people... they couldn't of being doing much

Bethesda France mainly did publishing and marketing within the region

blacktiger1d 11h ago

that's a shame for you to say that, i'm sure Elite loves hearing what you just said.

Mr Logic21h ago

What a stupid thing to say. The elites give 0 fucks what we say on an obscure website in the comments section.

Crows9021h ago

You can always reach out and give them jobs at your company man. Don't wait

Profchaos1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

Bethesda France focused on publishing and marketing in the region. And 15 people lost their jobs as part of the closure.

I wonder if this is part of Microsoft's strategy to abandoned physical media or possibly gamepass advertising makes their roles redundant you don't need to market a game as hard when the majority of players get the game as part of a sub which already promoted upcoming games

Tacoboto1d 13h ago

It's France too, there's a high likelihood only 1-2 people on the team even had an Xbox.

Profchaos1d 13h ago

Possibly guven all the leaks we know the Xbox brand is really struggling in the region.

Yi-Long1d 10h ago

Well, if your consoles and games are barely found in any stores any more, of course you're gonna struggle finding consumers ...

XiNatsuDragnel1d 12h ago

Tbh Microsoft I think Bethesda being 3rd party same with Activision would probably more competitive than thus scenario imo

Profchaos1d 10h ago (Edited 1d 10h ago )

I think it would have been better for all parties really especially gamers

TheColbertinator1d 11h ago

The recently purchased Activision French offices might take over all the licensing and marketing for Microsoft in France from now on.

Show all comments (21)
80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."