Xbox Misses Revenue Target for Fifth Time in Six Years

Xbox content and services revenue fell instead of rising 4.3% as planned, leaving senior executives, including the company’s chief executive, without part of their bonuses.

For the fifth time in six years, Xbox missed the financial targets tied to Microsoft executive bonuses. Instead of the expected growth, the gaming division’s content and services revenue dropped 6%.

Microsoft had aimed to grow this metric by 4.3% by June 30, 2026. The result came in more than 10 percentage points below the plan.

Since 2020, the bonuses of Microsoft’s key executives, including the head of the company, have partly depended on Xbox performance. The original metric focused mainly on growth in Game Pass subscribers, but in 2023 content and services revenue became the main measure.

Microsoft expects the new Game Pass pricing, the growth of cloud gaming, and the revised exclusivity policy to deliver results over the long term. For now, the financial results suggest the overhaul has not solved the brand’s main problem.