Microsoft announced their quarterly results recently, with some very good news for their Interactive Gaming division (Xbox, Xbox 360). Their gaming division were happy to see their results more than double thanks to the Xbox 360 momentum, inferring that Microsoft’s head start this generation is helping them create a solid customer base in anticipation of the PS3.

Some finer of the finer points from Microsoft’s Gamerscore blog after the jump..

· Xbox 360 will be available in 36 countries for the holiday and our installed base through September is 6 million consoles worldwide (3.6 million in North America, 1.7 million in Europe and approximately 700,000 in the rest of the world.)

· As such, Xbox 360 is in an excellent position for the second quarter. By holiday 2006, we expect to have sold more than 10 million Xbox 360 consoles worldwide and have a catalog of 160 high-definition games. Our yearly guidance still implies that by the end of the fiscal year we expect to have sold 13 to 15 million Xbox 360 consoles since launch.

· Key profit drivers for the platform include Xbox 360 software and accessory attach rates, which remain very strong relative to previous console launches. The Xbox 360 accessory attach rate remains the highest ever for the first ten months after a console launch in the US, holding at 2.9 accessory units sold per console (Source: NPD). Software attach rates rose to a record 5.1 units per console (Source: NPD).

· With the impending releases of the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player, the Xbox 360 Wireless Headset, and the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing wheel accessory attach rates are expected to continue their momentum into the second quarter and beyond.

· Xbox Live now boasts a community of more than 4 million members worldwide, with more than 6 million expected by June 2007. Xbox Live Marketplace, the one-stop digital download center, has seen more than 70 million downloads since launch including Xbox Live Arcade games, content packs, demos, and other media. To date, there have been a staggering 12 million Xbox Live Arcade downloads. All told, more than 2 billion Microsoft points have been sold to date.

Read more: Microsoft results at Gamerscore blog