Microsoft announced today that revenue for the fiscal 2012 fourth quarter ending June 30 reached $18.6 billion. That figure, which Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Steve Ballmer identified as a “record” for the company, reflected a 20 percent ($292 million) quarterly gain for the Redmond, Washington firm’s Entertainment and Devices Division (EDD). The division also enjoyed an eight percent gain over the course of the entire fiscal year. Microsoft was unable to turn a quarterly profit despite those figures, posting an operating loss of $492 million.

It was primarily Skype, added to the console holder’s product portfolio through an $8.5 million purchase in May of 2011, that accounted for the sales increase for the division that oversees all things Xbox, according to Microsoft. Another contributing factor was the Xbox 360 console holding on to its position as the best-selling game console in the United States during the quarter. The Xbox 360 has now been number one in the U.S. for 18 months running.

Despite its dominant position, the Xbox paralleled the rest of the domestic video game console market’s recent woes, selling hundreds of thousands of units less than it did during the same period in 2011. Consumers purchased 1.1 million Xbox 360 consoles throughout the quarter, down from the 1.7 million that were rang up in the fiscal fourth quarter of the previous year. Not all of the EDD’s figures were losses when compared to 2011, though. Xbox Live had another strong year, with its membership increasing by 15 percent during the period.

Source: Microsoft via Joystiq