Xbox Cloud Gaming now has a free ad-supported version that’s rolling out as part of Microsoft’s bigger push to bring more ads to Xbox. Jonathan Stringfield, who worked on Activision’s advertising push and is now doing some of the same work in his title as GM for Xbox Media Solutions, said in an interview that people shouldn’t see this as a move by Xbox to cram ads into all of its games.
“There is zero world where there is intention–written, explicit, implicit, or otherwise–that ads will be an option in all games. It might not even be the case on all features of the console, et cetera,” he told GamesBeat. “Where we want to have these integrated is places where it makes sense–where it can actually provide value in a positive way. Even if that means the total reach that we can have is going to be perhaps smaller than if we brute-forced it, that’s okay.”
Stringfield went on to point out how the gaming industry today is at a crossroads if the existing model is to survive. Many are saying it won’t, or shouldn’t, but Stringfield said if it does, then companies either need to “dramatically increase the price of games” or “find other mechanisms” that allow companies to make more money and keep the business healthy.
Stringfield, whose job is to help sell ads, said ads could be a way forward.
“When we talk about advertising–and things that are adjacent to it that amount to recurrent revenue, whether it’s subscriptions or otherwise–what this allows for is an alternative,” he said.