Just hours after Apple announced a price increase for MacBook and iPad, Microsoft also announced on Thursday that consumers will have to pay higher prices when purchasing Xbox game consoles in the future as the cost of key components continues to rise. Affected by the above news, Microsoft's stock price fell nearly 4% intraday, while Apple's stock price fell 5%.

Microsoft said that starting from August 1, the price of the Xbox Series S with 512GB storage capacity will increase by US$100 to approximately US$500; the price of the 1TB version will increase by US$150. At the same time, the starting price of the entry-level Xbox Series X will rise to about $750.

Microsoft said in its official blog: "Last October, we raised the price of Xbox consoles in the U.S. market by $20 to $70. We originally hoped that there would be no need to raise prices again and have continued to negotiate various solutions with suppliers over the past few months."

Microsoft pointed out that the main reason for this round of price increases is the sharp increase in storage and memory costs. “The price of storage and memory used in game consoles has increased more than 2.5 times, and we expect that this cost will double again by the fall of 2027.”

Currently, memory chip manufacturers including Micron and SK Hynix have relatively limited production capacity and are prioritizing resources into the production of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) required for artificial intelligence infrastructure to meet the strong demand for AI hardware such as Nvidia GPUs.

As demand continues to grow, memory chip manufacturers continue to raise product prices, thereby expanding profit margins.

This has also put cost pressure on consumer electronics such as smartphones, tablets and personal computers. Apple announced earlier that day that it would raise the prices of some products. It is reported that Mac computer prices have generally increased by about 15% to 20%, and iPad prices have increased by about 15% to 25%.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said in an interview with the media last week that the soaring cost of components caused by the AI ​​craze has made it impossible for Apple to continue to fully bear the costs for consumers, and price increases are inevitable.

Microsoft further stated in the blog: "The entire consumer electronics industry is dealing with the current parts supply crisis, but game consoles have been particularly hard hit."

The company explained: "Unlike mobile phones, computers, speakers and other consumer electronics, game consoles are usually not sold for profit and are often sold for less than their manufacturing costs."

In addition, Microsoft also announced that the 2TB version of Xbox Series X, launched in 2024, will cease sales.

In order to reduce consumer purchasing pressure, Microsoft said it has further optimized the "buy now, pay later" service. Consumers who purchase an Xbox console through Amazon can enjoy a zero-interest installment plan for up to one year.