Next-gen XBox coming for the holidays... next year

Gamers may want to start saving up as early as now for next year's holiday season: that's when Microsoft's next-generation gaming console is reportedly coming out.

 

A report on Bloomberg cited people familiar with Microsoft's plans who said the successor to the highly popular Xbox 360 may be available by then.

 

"While Xbox 360 had a strong Thanksgiving week, there are signs the console market is overdue for updates to boost sales, which have been declining," Bloomberg reported.

 

It added the plans are for the new device to go on sale at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

 

On the other hand, Bloomberg quoted one of its sources as saying Microsoft has yet to decide whether to unveil the new Xbox at an industry event like the E3 show in June, or at a separate event.

 

Other console makers have recently debuted or are soon to debut updates to their respective lineups, Bloomberg noted.

 

Nintendo recently came out with the Wii U, while Sony is preparing an update for its PlayStation.

 

After releasing the Xbox 360 in 2005, Microsoft added the Kinect to allow full-body motion controls to games played on it.

 

Bloomberg also said more than 40 million of the 70 million Xbox 360 customers have Xbox Live online subscriptions, though many of them are to watch TV and movies.

 

It added data from research firm NPD Group Inc. showed US retail sales of video-game software, hardware and accessories dropped 25 percent in October from a year earlier to $755.5 million.

 

It added NPD data showed that while Microsoft led in console sales in the US for 22 months through October, its monthly sales have been declining. — TJD, GMA News