Microsoft has reportedly decided not to continue to market Xbox Consoles in EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), focusing solely on marketing Game Pass, controllers, and its Cloud feature instead. This consideration comes after they announced that they are hiking up Game Pass prices, which has caused a huge stir in the gaming community.
Microsoft has been peddling that you no longer need an Xbox to play or utilize Xbox services, with many day-one Xbox releases also being released on PC. Alongside this, they promote their Game Pass subscription, offering plenty of offers to new subscribers, especially through the Discord Nitro gifts.
All of the recent changes within the Xbox team have come as Microsoft is beginning to navigate its new financial year, which means plenty of changes are to be expected. We have already seen many Xbox employees being laid off.
A while ago, Tom Warren of The Verge received a tip suggesting that Microsoft was shifting its focus on promoting its consoles for the new financial year. As it stands, the tip has not been fully verified, so this information may yet turn out to be incorrect. However, considering the significant changes we’ve seen Microsoft make so far, especially this week, it doesn’t sound so outlandish.
This change wouldn’t be a shock, as we have seen declining sales of their Xbox Series X|S consoles across EMEA markets for a while, with plenty of gamers choosing a PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, or PC instead. If this change goes ahead, we will see Microsoft focus less on consoles in Europe, meaning we could see a price hike as people would scalp them and then sell them through third parties. While the tip said it would affect the EMEA markets, it specified that it would only be in certain EMEA markets. At the moment, it is uncertain which markets across Europe will be affected.
Additionally, Xbox has released a dedicated app is available on Amazon Fire TV stick, where you can utilize Xbox services without the console. Should Microsoft undergo these changes, it will be interesting to see where the stock allocation goes instead. Especially as they have recently announced their brand-new disc-less Xbox Series X console. What does this mean for Xbox gamers in Europe, and will prices increase as a result?
If Microsoft confirms that it is ceasing EMEA console marketing, hopefully, it will expand and specify which markets will be affected so consumers can make a financial choice before the change.