Microsoft has recently posted its third quarter earnings for 2021, showing that a decent chunk of its profit is coming from Minecraft mods. Mod-makers for the block-based video game have earned Microsoft $350 million according to its Q3 report for 2021, thanks to the 140 million active users that Minecraft brings to the table each month.
Minecraft mod-makers are making a decent amount of profit these days, thanks to the Minecraft marketplace, an in-game shop where users can sell their modded content to players of the hit video game. The marketplace has been around since 2017, introduced as part of the Discovery update, which saw the introduction of the Woodland Mansion and several new block types. Minecraft was purchased by Microsoft for $2.5 billion dollars in 2014, and has become huge part of the company's sales revenue since then, with the game being ported to a number of different systems.
The Q3 report from Microsoft lays out a number of important figures, with the success of the Xbox Series X and S consoles, as well as Xbox Game Pass featuring as major reasons for the company's net income of $15.5 billion. Minecraft was singled out as a high performer for the company, with its 140 million monthly active users presenting a 30% year-over-year increase in players. Microsoft also points out that over 1 billion Minecraft mods have been downloaded across its various ports, and that mod-makers have brought in $350 million of revenue for the company thanks to the in-game marketplace. These figures are exclusively from the marketplace and not from outside sources.
Minecraft, although a decade old this November, is still proving to be a cash cow for Microsoft, despite many being unsure of the game living up to its $2.5 billion price tag back in 2014. With Minecraft modders now earning money from the mods, skins, and add-ons they upload to the marketplace, Microsoft has helped ensure the longevity of the game (and its revenue) by creating an official space for downloadable content, as well as incentivising mod creators to make Minecraft mods. According to Microsoft, mod-makers earn 50% of the revenue brought in by their mods, meaning that the kickback from third quarterly sales is somewhere in the region of $175 million for content creators.
While Minecraft is 10 years old this year, it certainly doesn't feel that way. With constant updates from Microsoft, as well as the release of Minecraft Dungeons and the constant porting of the game to new consoles, Minecraft is constantly being reintroduced to the public in new and exciting ways. User-created content is one of the best ways to keep a game's community thriving, and the ability for Microsoft to capitalize on the massive amount of modded content via Minecraft's in-game marketplace will certainly help to maintain a constant influx of cash from the title, along with helping content creators earn money for their hard work.
Minecraft is available now for Mobile, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: Microsoft