Microsoft Quarterly Revenue Tops $10 Billion

Microsoft Quarterly Revenue Tops $10 Billion "Information Worker revenue grew 27% over the prior year, as customers took advantage of the compelling value in the new Office System collaboration and productivity tools. Strong adoption of Office 2003 by consumers and small businesses drove sales in the retail and system builder channels to surpass expectations. Customers acquiring Office during the quarter included Eli Lilly and Company, Safeco Corporation, and Ticketmaster.
MSN® once again reported stronger than expected revenue growth of 19% over last year. "As MSN continues to invest in its growing businesses, we remain focused on achieving long term profitability," said Bruce Jaffe, chief financial officer of MSN. "A key factor in attaining that long-term goal will be the success of MSN's advertising business which achieved record revenue with 47% growth year over year, driven by strength in both traditional online and search-based advertising." This month, MSN also launched MSN Premium and the new MSN.com, which provides additional services for broadband customers as well as new opportunities for advertisers. MSN Premium is Microsoft's most comprehensive web service ever offered with advanced communication capabilities, security and protection features, and rich information services and productivity applications.
Home and Entertainment had a solid quarter driven by sales of Xbox® games and consoles. With over 400 games available, including 70 Live-enabled games, Xbox grew its U.S. cumulative game attach rate to 6.4, according to NPD Data. Since the launch of Xbox in 2001, Microsoft has sold over 13.7 million Xbox consoles worldwide and is on track to have sold 14.5 to 16.0 million consoles by the end of this fiscal year. In addition, Xbox Live (TM) momentum continued with subscribers growing to nearly 750,000, keeping the business on target to have one million subscribers by the end of the fiscal year."