Microsoft has always been about allowing players to play anywhere no matter if it’s not on an Xbox console. According to Tom Warren from The Verge, Microsoft might be changing its strategy for promoting Xbox consoles in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. This is according to one of Tom’s sources that indicates Microsoft will be focusing solely on Xbox Game Pass, Cloud Gaming, PC, and Xbox controllers.
“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”, Tom says in his “The Notepad” newsletter. (Thanks, Insider Gaming for sharing the quote)
This doesn’t mean Xbox consoles will stop being sold in these markets. It’s just less investments will be made toward the marketing of them.
It wouldn’t be too much of a surprise if this is the direction the company goes for pushing Xbox Series X|S sales in certain markets. Just recently, it was announced that Xbox games can be streamed from Game Pass to Amazon Fire TV sticks, meaning you wouldn’t need to own an Xbox Series console.
It is also worth noting that Xbox console sales have not been great ever since the Xbox One was released.
There also seems to be a new direction for Xbox Game Pass as Microsoft announced price increases for its subscription services.