Microsoft released its financial statements for the third quarter of 2020 today and all eyes are on the early effects of the current coronavirus pandemic. The corporation records $35 billion in sales, with $10.8 billion in net profit. Sales are up 15 percent, net profit has soared 22 percent, and Microsoft claims “COVID-19 has had a marginal net effect on overall business revenue.” Microsoft reports that, in the final weeks of the quarter ending March 31, “there has been a slowdown in transactional licensing, particularly in small and medium-sized companies, and a decline in advertisement expenditure in LinkedIn.”
The pandemic has improved remote jobs, and Microsoft has gained from its cloud and Office market offerings. Over the pandemic, there has been a growing need for Windows PCs both for work-related tasks and for students seeking to learn from home. Windows OEM Pro sales rose by 5 percent as a result of “increased demand to help remote work and learn scenarios.” However, some of this growth in demand was offset by production issues in China. Non-profit sales dropped by 10 percent, however, as Microsoft continues to see heavy competition in China for lower-priced products and supply constraints.
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When it comes to PCs, Microsoft’s Surface sales have only risen by 1 percent this year, presumably because the firm hasn’t released any new Surface items in the last year.
For around six months now, however, Microsoft has been offering its revamped Surface Pro 7, Surface Laptop 3, and the latest Surface Pro X.
We are now expecting Microsoft to release new Surface Book 3 and Surface Go 2 devices in May and reports also say that the company is ready to launch its Surface Buds and possibly upgrade to the Surface Dock. Microsoft hasn’t confirmed any Surface Hardware event for May yet, however, despite the pandemic, any hardware announcement would likely be online.
Microsoft continues to focus on its Android Surface Duo technology, and we hope to learn more about plans for this platform at next month’s virtual Build developer conference. Microsoft’s other dual-screen device, the Surface Neo, was reportedly delayed, so we don’t expect to see that device in 2020 any longer.
This time last year, Xbox and gaming were both strong for Microsoft and recent reports suggested that console spending during the pandemic has increased. Microsoft reports that total gaming sales decreased by 1 percent this year, with games and services on Xbox increasing by just 2 percent amid improved dedication during home-stay orders.
Conclusion:
In the coming weeks, Microsoft is scheduled to further outline its plans for the Xbox Gen X, including the release of several titles that will be featured on the console. Last month, the company announced the full Xbox Series X specifications including a 12 teraflop GPU, 16 GB ram, and exclusive 1 TB expansion packs.
