According to a report from Tom Warren at The Verge, Microsoft may soon reportedly stop advertising the Xbox Series X|S consoles in some regions. Warren writes in his The Verge newsletter that a source has claimed Microsoft will halt console marketing in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA).
This is going to be a major strategic turn in Microsoft"s gaming division. Instead of encouraging Xbox hardware sales, it would shift the focus toward Game Pass subscriptions, Xbox controllers, cloud gaming through xCloud, and the PC gaming market.
The exact sales of Series X|S have not been reported. However, analysts approximated that the total sales would be in the order of 25 to 30 million—far behind the nearly 60 million units sold thus far by the PlayStation 5. Taking this clear gap to heart, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has reiterated the importance of consoles.
He wrote in his The Verge newsletter:
Microsoft has been struggling to sell Xbox Series S / X consoles in many countries across EMEA, and the tipster believes Microsoft will now allocate less console stock to Europe as a result.
A recent report, however, suggests that Microsoft is under high scrutiny over its gaming business in such a vast Activision Blizzard acquisition. Ending console marketing in the poor-performing EMEA region could be a reaction to the Series X|S not making any ground against PlayStation.
As disappointing as this will be to fans, pulling out of consoles in Europe doesn"t mean it"s gone for good. Microsoft hinted it was working on a successor for the next generation.
There are further rumors of a portable, fully native Xbox device as early as 2026. Phil Spencer talked about "unique and powerful" initiatives that Xbox is working on next. In addition, Xbox President Sarah Bond hinted at upcoming console generation announcements and new hardware this holiday season.