NPD: Microsoft reveals 73 per cent Xbox Live growth

Microsoft has revealed that paid downloads have increased 73 per cent year-over-year for the first half of 2009, and boasts an active user base of 20 million people on Xbox Live.

The information, released in reaction to the NPD Group's official US sales results for June of 2009, also noted the year-on-year growth in Xbox 360 console sales.

As previously reported, Xbox 360 console sales clocked in at 241,000 units for June of 2009, a 20 per cent increase from the same period in 2008. Year-to-date, it remains the only home console to show growth in 2009, though Nintendo's DS portable console has also seen a sales increase.

The company also revealed that third-party software sales totaled USD 168 million in June, claiming that this figure is higher than those of the PlayStation 3 and Wii.

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