Microsoft has officially announced a significant increase in retail prices for the Xbox Series family of game consoles in the European and UK markets. The flagship Xbox Series X model is now offered at a cost of £669.99, which at current exchange rates is equivalent to approximately 72.0 thousand rubles, making the device noticeably less affordable for European consumers compared to the American market. The updated price list also affected other modifications: the basic Xbox Series S with 512 GB storage is now priced at €499.99 or £429.99, the version with 1 TB memory has risen to €599.99 (£519.99), and the digital version of the Xbox Series X without optical drive has set the bar at €749.99 (£619.99). A full-fledged Xbox Series X model with a disk drive now costs €799.99.

The key catalyst for this price revision was the ongoing global shortage and the rapid increase in the cost of RAM components and data storage systems. Back in June of this year, representatives of the technology giant warned of a likely twofold increase in the cost of these components, which inevitably translates into the final cost of products for consumers. It is noteworthy that this situation is not the exclusive policy of one company: Sony and Nintendo corporations have recently taken similar steps to adjust prices. This synchronicity indicates the presence of a systemic industry crisis in hardware supply chains, which is extremely difficult for electronics manufacturers to cope with alone.

Despite the significant increase in retail value, the financial model of console production remains unprofitable, as Microsoft continues to incur costs for each unit of equipment sold, even after the recent price increase. The company's management makes it clear that the situation in the electronic components market remains highly unstable, and forecasts for autumn 2027 suggest a possible further doubling of memory prices. In this regard, analysts do not rule out that the current price tags have not yet reached their maximum, and in the medium term, consumers should be prepared for further adjustments to the cost of gaming platforms from vendors.