Xbox 360 ships 1.7M consoles during Q1, revenue down 24%

Microsoft shipped 1.7 million Xbox 360 consoles during the first quarter of its financial period ending September 30, down 600,000 units compared to the 2.3 shipped during the same period in FY12.

The firm's Entertainment and Devices Division, which contains the Xbox brand, reported revenues of $1.95 billion, which was rather flat compared to the same period in FY12.

Operating income dropped 94% to $19 million, and the less-than-stellar results were blamed on a smaller release slate: during the same period in 2011, Gears of War 3 was released.

"Video game revenue decreased primarily due to the release of Gears of War 3 in the first quarter of fiscal year 2012 with no comparable major releases in the first quarter of fiscal year 2013," was the firm's exact quote.

Xbox 360 revenue decreased $418 million, down 24% year-over-year due to "lower volumes of consoles sold and lower video game revenue," said Microsoft. This was offset "in part by higher Xbox LIVE revenue."

Research and development expenses increased $140 million or 44%, primarily reflecting higher headcount-related expenses related to interactive entertainment and the acquisition of Skype.

Quarterly revenue for the firm as a whole came in at $16.01 billion with $4.47 billion in net income.

You can look over the full financial release here and here.