Home and Entertainment division revenue up more than 80 per cent

Microsoft has reported net income for the three months to the end of March of $2.97bn, compared to $2.56bn in the same period a year ago.

Revenue for the period increased 13 per cent year on year to $10.90bn, compared to $9.6bn in the year ago quarter. Operating income increased 17 per cent to $3.89bn, and included $397m in legal charges.

Demand for Microsoft's recently released products for businesses and consumers drove performance during the quarter in the Home & Entertainment, Business Solutions and Server & Tools groups.

Home & Entertainment revenue increased more than 80 per cent year on year to over $1bn, due to strong demand for the Xbox 360 system.

Microsoft Business Solutions delivered 21 per cent revenue growth to reach $216m, following continued interest in the Microsoft Dynamics line of business management solutions.

The three months marked the fifteenth consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth for the Server and Tools unit, with revenues increasing to $2.84bn from $2.45bn a year ago. Client sales increased slightly from $2.9bn to $3.1bn.

Revenues at MSN dropped slightly to $561m compared to $581m in the year ago quarter. MSN made a loss of $26m during the quarter, compared to a profit of $102m in 2005.