Microsoft makes $357M profit on games
Last October, Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division, the segment of the software giant that includes the Xbox 360 business, posted its first quarterly operating profit. Based on the strength of Halo 3, the division managed to finish the July-September quarter $165 million in the black.
Microsoft’s Xbox business proved it isn’t a one-hit wonder today when the company released its latest financial results, which saw the division more than double the previous quarter’s operating profit. For the company’s second fiscal quarter (the three months ended December 31), the entertainment and devices division posted $357 million in operating income on revenues of $3.06 billion.
In a conference call with investors, Microsoft senior vice president and CFO Chris Liddell said the console had reached a record tie ratio of seven games for every system sold, with the gaming division’s revenues beating the company’s previous investor guidance by $90 million. Although the revenue growth was minor (about 3 percent) over the same period the year before, the company’s gaming business had turned an operating loss of $302 million over the 2006 holiday quarter.
