Microsoft - Only half of XBOX Live users on Gold

"Of our 25 million members, about half of them are subscribers to the business and pay us about $60 a year for that," Microsoft's Dennis Durkin said earlier today at the Credit Suisse Annual Technology Conference in Phoenix. "So it's a very large business for us and for our partners."

He's beating the revenue drum there, but surely Microsoft would be quietly disappointed that only half the console's online userbase is coughing up $60 a year for an Xbox Live Gold subscription when it's been marketed as one of the real cornerstones of the Xbox 360.

Interestingly, as important as those subscription fees would seem to Xbox Live's bottom line, they're actually not the service's big breadwinner. That honour instead goes to digital content, with combined sales of downloadable content, avatar gear and media bringing in more money for Microsoft than millions of people paying $60 a year.

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I find this very interesting given that XBOX Live is probably one of the reason as to why the 360 continues to sell on par with the PS3 despite being priced almost exactly the same.

More interestingly, it seems that more money is coming from sales now, i honestly thought 12 million people coughing up $60 a year for a service that doesnt exactly cost that much to run would be pure profit for them.

Source: Kotaku

I expected more.

MS are dumb if only half the people are using Live than clearly those half are prepared to pay anything. The price should really be pumped up to $80 since that would make up for those who who don't use Gold subscription :twisted:

Hmmm...I thought this was well known.

Microsoft - Only Half of Xbox Live users bend over.

Grawse

[QUOTE="Grawse"]

Microsoft - Only Half of Xbox Live users bend over.

mattuk69

Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. NAPK1NS

Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. NAPK1NS

[QUOTE="Grawse"]

Microsoft - Only Half of Xbox Live users bend over.

racing1750

[QUOTE="racing1750"][QUOTE="Grawse"]

Microsoft - Only Half of Xbox Live users bend over.

Grawse

[QUOTE="NAPK1NS"]Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. Floppy_Jim

[QUOTE="NAPK1NS"]Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. Lto_thaG

I'm cool with paying for LIVE as long as my friends are. The second they would abandon it, I would too.

[QUOTE="Lto_thaG"]

[QUOTE="NAPK1NS"]Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. NAPK1NS

[QUOTE="NAPK1NS"][QUOTE="Lto_thaG"] True,the others should jump in and play online with the rest.

Lto_thaG

[QUOTE="Lto_thaG"][QUOTE="NAPK1NS"]"Jump in?" Get away from me, Microsoft representative. I don't want your services. NAPK1NS

[QUOTE="NAPK1NS"]

[QUOTE="Lto_thaG"] Cheapo!Lto_thaG

I don't regret paying for live at all, it is a quality service and my girlfriend and myself pretty much keep the Xbox going all the time, she works days and I work nights so we've always got either games or netflix running.

Besides, I played PS3's online and there was a huge difference in quality, I would gladly pay the minimal fee to keep the quality up and the extra multimedia stuff coming.

Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. NAPK1NS

*Shakes head*

And I'm one of them : D

Only half of Xbox Live users still have a brain. NAPK1NS

Yes, I'm that brainless for pumping roughly US$3,00 a month (let's recall that while US$60,00 is the base price, there are more offers and discounts on the XBL price than not, so you can get it for ~40 bucks a year) to be able to play online, watch ESPN, use Zune, have access to Deals of the Week (With each game discounting US$5,00 or more, you end up getting more from using gold -- if you use their online marketplace, that is) and party with my friends (For the PS3 owners, a party is basically an option you have on XBL to have a group of up to eight friends chatting simultaneously - and, check this out - independently of what game each one is playing).

I'm not dissapointed that I have to skip a cup of coffee of Starbucks every 30 days so that I can play online. At least I don't have to use the relatively **** PSN, with it's horribad online integration.

So, which console has more users playing online?

[QUOTE="AncientDozer"]I don't even know if I have the energy to deal with another "lawlz, I'm going to bend things to make Microsoft look bad because I'm a tool and want to get attention and look smart" thread. Oh, I'm sorry. Micro$oft, right? That's how all the cool kids do it. But I jest. I have the utmost respect for my peers, it's just that threads like these are asinine. They serve no other purpose than slander and skew information so that like-minded people can nod their head and reaffirm their thoughts. First off, the assumption that Xbox Live is a service that should be free needs to die because, really, we don't know. There are only two services for consoles, one free and one not and xbox live has been doing it a lot longer. We don't know what Sony had to give up to keep PSN free, we don't know what Microsoft does with the money. We do know that the PSN has been looking for ways to get money, such as that PSN+ service and that Live is looking to reward customers for loyalty. Secondly, I can't believe you people are surprised that DLC is raking in the money. Live is only, what, 7 or 8 dollars? 9 dollars a month? Now look at DLC for games along, ranging from 8-15 dollars. Now. Each person can only pay that fee for live once a month but each person can buy as much content for games and media as they feel necessary. Just the other day I bought an expansion for Fable III and some things for Oblivion, which I went back to after the possibility of there being an Elder Scrolls V. Now, I don't bother with avatar clothes but I know people who do who've bought multiple outfits. So it's simple math. Think of it like this. They pay the xbox live fee, of 8 or whatever dollars a month, and in addition buy eight dollars or more worth of content for avatars, media, and games combined. Of course DLC is going to net more money, especially since you don't need a Gold Account to visit the market place. That's another thing. All those people who aren't paying for Live? They can still spend money on DLC.tormentos

Yes... because the Playstation online network had just as many features as Xbox Live and PSN do, right? Different tiers, what AncientDozer probably meant is that the 360 set the bar for online gaming this generation.

[QUOTE="tormentos"][QUOTE="AncientDozer"]I don't even know if I have the energy to deal with another "lawlz, I'm going to bend things to make Microsoft look bad because I'm a tool and want to get attention and look smart" thread. Oh, I'm sorry. Micro$oft, right? That's how all the cool kids do it. But I jest. I have the utmost respect for my peers, it's just that threads like these are asinine. They serve no other purpose than slander and skew information so that like-minded people can nod their head and reaffirm their thoughts. First off, the assumption that Xbox Live is a service that should be free needs to die because, really, we don't know. There are only two services for consoles, one free and one not and xbox live has been doing it a lot longer. We don't know what Sony had to give up to keep PSN free, we don't know what Microsoft does with the money. We do know that the PSN has been looking for ways to get money, such as that PSN+ service and that Live is looking to reward customers for loyalty. Secondly, I can't believe you people are surprised that DLC is raking in the money. Live is only, what, 7 or 8 dollars? 9 dollars a month? Now look at DLC for games along, ranging from 8-15 dollars. Now. Each person can only pay that fee for live once a month but each person can buy as much content for games and media as they feel necessary. Just the other day I bought an expansion for Fable III and some things for Oblivion, which I went back to after the possibility of there being an Elder Scrolls V. Now, I don't bother with avatar clothes but I know people who do who've bought multiple outfits. So it's simple math. Think of it like this. They pay the xbox live fee, of 8 or whatever dollars a month, and in addition buy eight dollars or more worth of content for avatars, media, and games combined. Of course DLC is going to net more money, especially since you don't need a Gold Account to visit the market place. That's another thing. All those people who aren't paying for Live? They can still spend money on DLC.GFugue

Yes... because the Playstation online network had just as many features as Xbox Live and PSN do, right? Different tiers, what AncientDozer probably meant is that the 360 set the bar for online gaming this generation.

Online play has been free before there was a ps2 on the market,so saying live has been doing it for lot longer is wrong when live started on 2002,the ps2 had online play with voice chat before live even hit.tormentos

Yes... because the Playstation online network had just as many features as Xbox Live and PSN do, right? Different tiers, what AncientDozer probably meant is that the 360 set the bar for online gaming this generation.

I've had ... eight years of gold now. That's $400, the launch price of a 360, or at least four brand-new games.

If Microsoft wasn't holding online play hostage I'd stop paying right this instant. None of the other "features" offered by XBL Gold remotely justify their asking price.

IFirst off, the assumption that Xbox Live is a service that should be free needs to die because, really, we don't know. AncientDozer

Microsoft is charging you for peer-to-peer online play. XBL is the only service that chooses to do this. Online play, on a system you paid for, using bandwidth that you paid for, with the games that you paid for, shouldn't come with an additional yearly fee. I can't see why anyone would be so excited to jump to Microsoft's defense on this one, besides Stockholm Syndrome.

If the half that are paying all stopped paying then MS would make it free. That wont happen though. I don't like anyone paying for PSN+ because it can lead to Sony's PSN becoming a charge to play games online service in the future.

working 1 day = 1 year of xbl for me. xbox360isgr8t

not even a whole day for me. more like a few hours. small price to pay IMO

[QUOTE="xbox360isgr8t"]working 1 day = 1 year of xbl for me. todd2r

not even a whole day for me. more like a few hours. small price to pay IMO

[QUOTE="GFugue"]

[QUOTE="tormentos"] Online play has been free before there was a ps2 on the market,so saying live has been doing it for lot longer is wrong when live started on 2002,the ps2 had online play with voice chat before live even hit.AncientDozer

Yes... because the Playstation online network had just as many features as Xbox Live and PSN do, right? Different tiers, what AncientDozer probably meant is that the 360 set the bar for online gaming this generation.