Rumor: Microsoft Stops Promoting Xbox Consoles in Europe

Journalist Tom Warren, who usually has good sources, says he has received advice that Microsoft is planning to stop promoting Xbox consoles in Europe, or at least significantly reduce their promotion.

Concretely, Microsoft will discontinue or scale back Xbox console sales in the EMEA region. EMEA consists of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It’s no secret that Xbox is performing very poorly in these regions. Xbox Series consoles are expected to lag 13% behind Xbox One during the same period, while the PS5 is significantly outperforming the PS4. Historically, Xbox has always had a tough time in these regions.

Of course, Microsoft won’t immediately stop selling Xbox consoles in Europe, but available stock will shrink. In practice, this is probably primarily due to better coordination between supply and demand.

Marketing will then shift from focusing on Xbox consoles to focusing on Xbox Game Pass, cloud gaming, PC gaming, and Xbox consoles.

For now, this will of course remain just a rumor and it remains to be seen what exactly it means. Tom Warren also stated that he has not yet been able to verify the information with 100% certainty, but the source seems reliable enough to share the rumor now.