Xbox CEO claims Game Pass price cuts are working: ‘A good first step’
Asha Sharma also attempted to explain the rebrand to all-caps ‘XBOX’
Xbox’s new CEO, Asha Sharma, has claimed that a recent price reduction to some Game Pass tiers has yielded positive results for the platform holder.
In a note to staff published by The Verge, Asha Sharma claimed that last month’s price reductions for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass had resulted in net positive signups for the service.
“Growth slowed down, and subscriber loss accelerated after the pricing and SKU changes last year,” Sharma wrote. “Since our price reduction, we have seen acquisitions grow, and retention improve, which is a good first step.”
However, Sharma went on to claim that there were challenging times ahead for the Game Pass service overall.
“We will not solve this in one moment or one launch,” she wrote. “We will have to outwork the problem in front of us in our path to restore durable growth.”
In the same memo to staff, Sharma also touched on her recent decision to rebrand Xbox to ‘XBOX’.
“We are building a stronger XBOX. That means making hard choices about what we build, where we invest, and what kind of company we need to be going forward,” she wrote.
“That is part of what you are starting to see in the shift from Xbox to XBOX. It reflects a decision to be deliberate in how we show up for the players who care most about this brand.”
Sharma has kicked off a charm offensive with core fans since succeeding Phil Spencer as Xbox CEO earlier this year. In addition to rebranding Xbox and cutting Game Pass prices, the exec has committed to acting on player feedback regarding the console experience and policies.
Notably, Sharma has claimed that Xbox will “reevaluate” its approach to exclusivity, suggesting she’s listening to the Xbox players who feel the platform has lost value due to Microsoft’s decision to bring its first-party games to PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2.
