Microsoft to fix Xbox 360s, take $1B-plus charge
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft expects to take an earnings charge of more than $1 billion for the quarter that ended in June related to expenses it will incur fixing faulty Xbox 360 machines. On Thursday, Microsoft said it will expand its warranty coverage to Xbox 360 customers who have a certain type of hardware failure. The new program is a result of an "unacceptable number of repairs to Xbox 360 consoles," Microsoft said. Customers who have a general hardware failure that is indicated by three flashing red lights on their consoles will now be covered by a three-year warranty starting on the date of purchase. Microsoft will repair or replace the console, including cost of shipping, within that time frame. The company will also reimburse customers who have already paid for the repairs. After investigating this high number of hardware failures, Microsoft identified factors that cause the problems and has made changes to prevent them, the company said. Microsoft expects to take a $1.05 billion to $1.15 billion pretax charge for its quarter ending June 30 because of expenses related to fixing the consoles.
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Microsoft had a second lawsuit filed against it this week by customers complaining about the Xbox 360 console scratching and ruining video game discs.
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Microsoft roiled the gaming world Thursday by taking a $1 billion charge to take care of problems with its Xbox 360. NEWSWEEK's N'gai Croal talks to Xbox chief Peter Moore about the decision.
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Microsoft has released a new SKU for their Xbox 360 console--but should you buy it?
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Microsoft Corp  posted a 7  percent gain in net profit as demand for its Office software  and improved results from its online arm more than compensated  for a $1.1 billion charge to repair Xbox game consoles.
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An Xbox 360 user in Fort Lauderdale, Florida has filed a class-action lawsuit against Microsoft for damage done by the console to individual game discs.
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Microsoft will incur pretax costs of as much as $1.15 billion related to repairing Xbox 360 video-game consoles and said yesterday that sales of the machines missed its forecast for the fiscal year that ended June 30.
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Overheating to blame? Your Xbox 360 has a 16.4 per cent chance of breaking down, according to an analysis of the Microsoft consoleâs failure rates by an electronics warranty trading firm.â¦
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Microsoft denies accusations that Xbox 360 owners in Great Britain are treated unfairly when their consoles need repair. In Game|Life.
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Certainly, most savvy 360 owners already know that three red lights on the front of their console means certain unwanted death. A number of users have already undergone the painful ordeal of seeing their 360 units die, but some of them have also witnessed their machines come back to life due to the efforts of Microsoft&#39;s customer service department. The more curious lot of these Xbox 360 owners have opened up their repaired consoles to see what exactly has been fixed, and have discovered a new heatsink in their machine.
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Microsoft Corp  is offering to replace damaged discs of its just-launched "Halo 3" game for the Xbox amid reports that special limited-edition packaging is scratching them.
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Microsoft Corp  said on  Thursday it was giving customers free retrofits to a wireless  racing wheel with its Xbox 360 video game system after hearing  of malfunctions in a wheel component.
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Microsoft's hardware-challenged Xbox has another problem on its hands.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft managed to earn a slight profit for its fiscal 2008 fourth quarter despite a billion-dollar-plus charge related to expenses the company incurred to fix faulty Xbox360 consoles. For the quarter that ended June 30, Microsoft reported net income of $3.04 billion compared to net income of $2.83 billion for the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.31, a number that took into account a previously announced charge related to extending warranties for its Xbox 360 console. Excluding that charge, EPS for the quarter was $0.39, in line with estimates from Thomson Financial analysts. Revenue for the quarter was up 13 percent at $13.37 billion, compared to revenue of $11.8 billion for the same period last year. In a statement, Microsoft attributed revenue growth to demand for its new client OS Windows Vista, as well as business products such as SQL Server and Windows Server. Microsoft's Visual Studio developer tools and Xbox360 consoles also did well in the quarter, the company said. Microsoft said earlier this month it would take an earnings charge of more than $1 billion for its fourth quarter related to expenses for expanding its warranty coverage to Xbox 360 customers who have a certain type of hardware failure, which required an "unacceptable" number of repairs to the consoles. Microsoft revenue also was up for the year and topped $50 billion for the first time. For the 2007 fiscal year ended June 30, revenue was $51.12 billion, a 15 percent increase over the prior year, when the company reported $44.28 billion. Diluted earnings per share for the year were $1.42, which includes $0.07 in charges for certain items. Excluding those charges, EPS for the year would have been $1.49, an increase of 17 percent over the prior year when the company also adjusted for certain items and reported EPS of $1.21. For the current quarter, which began July 1, Microsoft is expecting revenue in the range of $12.4 billion to $12.6 billion, with diluted EPS in the range of $0.38 to $0.40. For fiscal-year 2008, which will end June 30, 2008, revenue is expected to be in the range of $56.8 billion to $57.8 billion, and diluted EPS is expected to be in the range of $1.69 to $1.73. However, Microsoft noted its guidance does not include the as-yet-undetermined impact of costs associated withÂ the company's acquisition of aQuantive, which is expected to close in the current quarter. Microsoft announced in May that it would purchase the digital advertising and marketing services agency.
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Microsoft Corp said on Thursday it will offer a free downloadable video game to users of its Xbox online gaming service after the network was plagued with connection troubles over the holidays.
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SEATTLE - Microsoft said Thursday it eked out a gain in net profit despite taking a $1 billion charge to pay for repairs to its Xbox 360 game consoles.
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Microsoft Corp said on Thursday  it will offer a free downloadable video game to users of its  Xbox online gaming service after the network was plagued with  connection troubles over the holidays.