Microsoft Stops Sharing Digital Sales Data with Circana
Microsoft has stopped sharing digital sales data for its Xbox, Activision and Bethesda games with Circana, the US analytics firm formerly known as NPD, meaning the tracker will now have to estimate rather than report exact figures for Microsoft titles. This reduces the accuracy of publicly available industry sales data and raises questions about transparency, particularly as it follows a period of declining Xbox console sales.
Circana compiles monthly best-seller charts using digital sales data voluntarily supplied by publishers such as Sony and Bandai Namco, combined with retailer figures. Microsoft's withdrawal, effective from the July report, puts it alongside Nintendo and Take-Two, which have long withheld such data; Circana has begun using estimated figures to fill these gaps. Microsoft has also ceased sharing data with the European tracker GSD, and commentators speculate other publishers, such as PlayStation, could follow suit in future.
- Microsoft stops giving Circana digital sales data for Xbox, Activision, Bethesda games.
- Circana must now estimate Microsoft's figures, reducing accuracy.
- Microsoft also stopped sharing data with European tracker GSD.
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Circana is a US firm that tracks video game sales and publishes monthly charts. It combines figures from shops with digital sales data that some game publishers choose to share, helping show which games are selling well.
Microsoft publishes games for Xbox as well as through Activision and Bethesda, which it owns. Nintendo and Take-Two have also kept their digital sales figures from Circana, so those parts of its charts rely on estimates. The figures matter to players, publishers and analysts trying to understand how games and consoles are performing.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Companies have legitimate rights to control proprietary business data; Microsoft's decision reflects reasonable concerns about data accuracy, competitive sensitivity, and commercial confidentiality. Voluntary participation in third-party analytics should not be treated as an industry obligation, and publishers properly prioritise shareholder interests and business discretion over supplying detailed figures to external trackers.
The case against
Industry transparency serves the gaming market and consumers by enabling independent assessment of sales trends and competitive health. When major publishers withdraw data, it reduces the reliability of public industry information and raises reasonable concerns that companies may selectively manage disclosure based on performance—a troubling precedent that undermines market transparency.