Here is where you are making your mistake. You think that someone at MS has to justify their profitablility to YOU (or the general public). THEY DO NOT! They only have to release what is required by regulations for publically traded companies. That DOES NOT include detailed financials for each and every product they make!
Now, the truth of the matter is that MS is a MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR company. They post incredible profits each and every quarter....and Xbox has NOTHING to do with that success! The Xbox exists because Bill Gates saw Sony's dominance in the industry and wanted to "take over the living room". They were willing to lose money on the division (for a time), if it meant that millions of customers would own their console, giving them recurring subscription revenue (XBL) and revenue from selling your data. Their "vision" for Xbox evolved...they wanted to be the "gatekeeper" to ALL of your entertainment...movies, cable TV, games, apps, everything. They would use Kinect to mine additional data...logos on the coffee table would be scanned, and that data would be sold to advertisers (see their patent applications for Kinect for details)...they would create new revenue models, like scanning the number of viewers in the room and charging per viewer for movies and TV. In other words, they had MULTIPLE ways they were going to profit from the Xbox, and very little had anything at all to do with gaming.
Now, we all know how this story ended. Their "vision"...additional DRM, restriction of used games, the forced inclusion of Kinect....it was ALL rejected by consumers, who just wanted a GAMING CONSOLE! So MS ditches Kinect, sells the XB1 at a lower price and says "We are bringing the GAMES!". Problem is, they are NOT. Sony, having planned for this generation YEARS in advance, has DOUBLE the amount of games available on their console! Additionally, the multiplatform games ALL look and PLAY better on the equivalently priced PS4! Long story short...the XB1 is NOT selling in the numbers needed for MS to realize their vision...and even if it does...most of the revenue they counted on is not going to be there, since they eliminated the requirement for Kinect! (and the XBL "paywall" for apps)
So, you (and other die-hards) can argue that Xbox is profitable all you want. The fact is, it's not, it's NEVER been, and it NEVER will be. It is nothing more than a DISTRACTION to Microsoft's core business at this point, and it's taking resources away from other divisions that could better leverage the capital! You and I don't get to see the whole picture here...but make no mistake, the BOARD OF DIRECTORS at Microsoft DOES get to see the real numbers...and they are NOT happy!
You will see all of this come to a head late this year or early next year. Just don't be surprised when the job cuts come, and the Xbox ends up next to those ET cartridges in that New Mexico landfill! It's happened before, to more astute players than Microsoft. Remember Atari? 3DO? Sega? Intellivision? Colecovision? The history of this industry is LITTERED with the corspes of dead consoles...to think MS is immune, just because of their money made IN OTHER BUSINESSES, is dumb.
