Strong Halo 3 launch helps Microsoft gaming to first profit in years
Microsoft reported its quarterly earnings yesterday, and the company has reason to be pleased with itself. Revenues were at $13.76 billion for the quarter, a full 27 percent jump from last year's first-quarter revenues of $10.81 billion. "This fiscal year is off to an outstanding start with the fastest revenue growth of any first quarter since 1999," said Chris Liddell, chief financial officer at Microsoft. "Operating income growth of over 30 percent also reflects our ability to translate revenue into profits while making strategic investments for the future."
Much of this gain is due to the release of Halo 3, what Microsoft is calling the "biggest entertainment launch day in history." The NPD Group reported that in September, Halo 3 sold a combined total of 3.3 million units, and the game helped Microsoft sell 527,000 Xbox 360s, beating even Nintendo in hardware sales.
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