As is usually the case with new console launches, the Xbox Series X and Series S (and the PS5) have been facing supply constraint issues, with their stock selling out rapidly. These issues, in fact, have been propounded greatly by the fact that the consoles have launched in the middle of a global pandemic- and these supply issues are likely going to continue for a few more months yet.
Speaking at the Jefferies Interactive Entertainment conference (via Seeking Alpha), Xbox CFO Tim Stuart said that the Xbox Series X and Series S supply constraints that are being faced in nearly all markets of the world are likely going to continue until the end of Q1 2021 (which ends on March 31st).
“For Q2, we gave guidance at our last earnings call of a zone that we’ll be in,” Stuart said. “And we’ll, frankly, be within that zone because we know the supply profile that we’re having. I think we’ll continue to see supply shortages as we head into the post-holiday quarter, so Microsoft’s Q3, calendar Q1. And then when we get to Q4, all of our supply chain continuing to go full speed heading into kind of the pre-summer months.”
Stuart added that once supply catches up with demand, we will begin to see “see some real velocity kick up” for both SKUs of the next generation of Xbox.
“And that’s where I start to — I expect to see a little bit of the demand — the supply profile, meeting the demand profile,” he said. “You’ll be outside of a holiday window. We’ll have supply cranking over the next, what, 4, 5, 6 months. And that’s when I expect to see really that demand profile start to be met, which will be really, really great. And really, what that’s going to do is, once we get into that world of a great high end, call it, a great high-powered console, plus that lower-end SKU for value, I think we’re going to start to see some real velocity kick up, which I’m really excited to see.”
Microsoft recently confirmed that the Xbox Series X/S enjoyed the biggest console launch in Xbox history, with reports claiming that the two collectively sold around 155,000 units in the UK within 48 hours of launch.
