Microsoft would like to offer free-to-play games a new form of monetization… without even taking its share.
Video game is a complex subject that is often debated. Still in 2020, Electronic Arts caused a scandal by integrating advertisements (quickly withdrawn) in his UFC 4 game. So there is no doubt that it will eventually happen on a large scale sooner or later.
archyde news in Xbox games?
According to the very serious Business Insider which cites two sources involved in the discussions, Microsoft would like to allow the integration of advertisements in Xbox games free-to-play. The Redmond firm is currently looking for a partner to create an inventory of in-game with agencies to allow developers to sell specific space within their games.
Unlike the UFC 4 case where it was all about interstitial (appearing over the rest of the game), this would be about subtly integrating ad slots into the game itself, with dedicated panels on the edge of the road in a racing game, for example. It is not said however whether other much more intrusive formats are envisaged or not, as may be the case on mobile for example.
Contacted by Business Insider, Microsoft did not confirm this rumor. The sources, however, indicate a possible deployment in the third quarter of this year.
A very limited market
Surprising point: Microsoft would not have planned to take a commission on the revenue generated by these advertisements, in order to create new opportunities for game developers free-to-play. A good way to set up a whole new ecosystem around games that could generate real windfalls of money for Microsoft in the long term through other monetization systems (such as purchases in-app).
The idea would also be to not frustrate the players. archyde news in video games is a sensitive subject and gamers are irritable. Microsoft would therefore intend to create a private market place allowing it to select the brands that could broadcast through this platform. Enough to avoid the excesses that we know in catalog background advertisements.
Finally, it would be out of the question, at least initially, to let advertisers collect data (from Bing or Edge for example) to target Xbox users.
Technique and ethics
This raises a lot of questions, both on how it might be received by players, but also on the technical aspect. archyde news already exists in some video games and the dynamic aspect of always raises questions since it is then imperative that the console be connected to the internet in order to be able to update the spaces. These spaces could nevertheless be ideal for free-to-play online like Fortnite for example. It remains to do it subtly and not to give in to the lure of profit…
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