Ads in Xbox Game Pass Games; Microsoft Experiments
Although the issue of in-game ads has quieted down somewhat in recent months, Microsoft is still considering introducing them. The company is also debating the use of a solution known from the PlayStation Plus service.
For some time now, more and more streaming services have been working on introducing cheaper subscriptions that include ads into their offerings. It's no secret that similar solutions are also tempting leading players in the gaming market such as Microsoft, for example.
Last December, media around the world wrote about the Redmond giant's patented technology allowing for ads to be displayed while playing online games. Admittedly, since then the topic has somewhat quieted down, but as it turns out, the corporation is still working on the implementation of further innovations - including ads - to Xbox Game Pass.
In a recent interview with British magazine Rolling Stone Microsoft's vice president Sarah Bond revealed that the company is internally debating business models that would bring additional benefits from titles on PC and consoles.
At the same time, she suggested that among the ideas under consideration there is advertising or "games for a limited time.". The first option is known, while the second usually gives players a certain number of hours to try the initial stages of a game. After completing them, they have the option to buy the full version and continue from where they left off.
"We talked about how we're experimenting with other models, for example, what does this mean for ads in games that are more common on mobile devices - are there models that will work well on both PC and consoles? Are there other models where you can have timed-limited fragments of games and the like?," Bond asked.
If Microsoft decides to add temporary demos to Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft's service could be an alternative to Sony's PlayStation Plus. Recall that the Japanese competitor gives its subscribers the opportunity to play trial versions of some of its own titles.
Although at this point Microsoft has not announced the introduction of any of the above ideas, the mere mention of it by the company's vice president may herald that the corporation is increasingly serious about such solutions.
