Xbox division profits for second straight year, but ...

Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division -- the gaming and Zune portion of the company -- has announced profits for the fiscal year that ended on June 30. Unfortunately for Microsoft, it's 66 percent less profit than last year ($169 million, down from $497 million). In this economy, though, some profit can still seem like a total win.

Revenue from Xbox 360 and PC sales dropped in the fourth quarter by 12 percent, to $110 million, due mostly to reduced Xbox 360 hardware sales and, of course, the fact that the systems cost less and brought in less revenue per console than in 2008. Shipments declined in this period from 1.3 million in 2008 to 1.2 million units. Overall, however, shipments increased from 8.7 million to 11.2 million units. Go figure.