Thanks to recent documents submitted to Brazilian regulators, we now have an idea of what Xbox Game Pass revenue looks like, and as you might imagine, it's pretty impressive. On console alone, Xbox Game Pass reached almost $3 billion last year, and that's without factoring in PC Game Pass.
As spotted by the folks at TweakTown, Microsoft recently submitted revenue documents to the Brazilian economic authority CADE, and those documents give us an insight into Xbox Game Pass revenue. According to the documents, Microsoft made $2.9 billion from Xbox Game Pass on console last year, which is pretty impressive.
Microsoft rarely officially reveals subscriber or revenue numbers for Xbox Game Pass, but we do have an idea of where the service might be in that regard. Back in January this year, Xbox Game Pass hit 25 million subscribers. That's split between PC and console, of course, but it's still a lot of people, and when combined with the $2.9 billion figure, we see just how dominant Xbox Game Pass really is.
The reasons for the success of Xbox Game Pass are likely manifold. Solid game selection, day one releases for major Microsoft franchises, and regular free or reduced-cost trials don't hurt, and new Xbox console purchases often come with Xbox Game Pass memberships to sweeten the deal. Suffice it to say that if you've got an Xbox console, you've probably subscribed to Game Pass at some point.
Microsoft is riding high, but there are still hurdles to clear
These documents were submitted to Brazilian regulators as part of Microsoft's push to clear its Activision Blizzard purchase, which is officially the most expensive gaming acquisition of all time. Brazilian regulators (as well as Saudi Arabian regulators) recently cleared the deal with no objections, although other regulators (and rivals like Sony) have questions about whether Microsoft's deal will constitute a monopoly.
Microsoft still needs to clear the deal with US and UK regulators, as well as the EU, which recently launched a questionnaire asking developers their opinion about the acquisition. The Xbox Game Pass numbers will probably have been submitted as part of various other regulatory bodies' reviews, too, but we'll have to wait for the results of those investigations to hear more about that.
We may not know what the results of various investigations into Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition are yet, but one thing's for sure: Xbox Game Pass is doing gangbusters. It's hard to imagine Game Pass being unseated from its throne, either, as the Brazilian regulatory documents show Nintendo Switch Online making less than $1 billion and EA Play (which is bundled with Game Pass) hitting just $356 million in 2021. We'll bring you more on Xbox Game Pass and the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal as soon as we get it.
