Give credit to Microsoft where it’s due, sales of the Xbox 360 are projected to exceed the lifetime instal base of the original Xbox by November, where the Xbox 360 will surpass 25 million units sold.
In Microsoft’s own words: “By the end of this month, we expect our global installed base to reach 25 million units, surpassing that of the first Xbox,” said Mindy Mount, CFO of the Xbox business, at the BMO Capital Markets Interactive Entertainment Conference.
This is a big deal because of Microsoft’s huge investment, at a gigantic loss, to break into the video game market. Now we all knew that the Xbox 360 was a successful platform, but this proves that there is more interest in the Xbox than ever before, and an important milestone to be able to surpass Microsoft’s first console.
And this is only the start, Mindy Mount went on to say. That’s because “more than three-quarters” of a console’s lifetime sales are made when the system falls to the “sweet spot” price point of $199.99 or lower. Which is the price of the lowest-end Xbox 360 available, the Arcade, reports Edge.
According to Microsoft, recently introduced 360 price cuts saw Xbox sales jump 42% month-on-month in the States, 62% in Europe and 500% in Japan.