Microsoft's Xbox One sales at 18 million reveals eSports CEO

Update: Gfinity has reached out to us to clarify that the figure quoted by CEO Neville Upton was based on "a variety of independent sources published earlier this year" and not official word from Microsoft.

Original Story: Lifetime sales of the Xbox One are around 18 million according to Neville Upton, CEO of UK eSports company Gfinity. Microsoft has kept quiet regarding the sales of its latest games console because it is currently a distant second behind Sony's PlayStation 4.

While discussing the company's new Tournament Build app, Upton said he hopes the app will allow Gfinity "to reach Xbox One's 18 million users globally, offering this new larger audience the opportunity to interact with the Gfinity brand." (via GamesIndustry.biz)

The last time Microsoft announced Xbox One sales figures officially it was to mark the console passing the 10-million-mark way back in November 2014. Sony meanwhile has been proudly boasting its sales figures for some time, revealing in January that the PS4 has passed 35.9 million units sold.

Despite selling half that of the PlayStation 4, the Xbox One is still selling well, and crucially, better than Microsoft's previous console the Xbox 360 was selling at the same stage of its lifespan. Yesterday (20 April) Microsoft announced that the 360 has been discontinued after nearly 10 and a half years on sale.

After a rocky launch hamstrung by a string of innovative ideas that didn't sit well with gaming audiences, Xbox One has been bolstered by a change of management with Phil Spencer becoming Xbox boss and successive first party line-ups in 2013 and 2014 that trumped what Sony was offering on PS4.

This year the current slate of first party titles greatly favours the PS4. Throw in the launch of PlayStation VR and it's unlikely that Microsoft will be gaining much ground on Sony in the foreseeable future.