Microsoft Is Launching a Mobile Game Store (geekwire.com) 31
During a Bloomberg event today, Xbox president Sarah Bond said the company plans to launch a mobile gaming store to rival Apple and Google. "According to Bond, the as-yet-unnamed store will launch in July on web browsers, rather than a designated app, with Microsoft's recently-acquired Candy Crush Saga serving as a day-one tentpole franchise," reports GeekWire. From the report: Microsoft's entry into the mobile gaming market -- the most lucrative arm of the games industry -- has been anticipated, particularly since the company's recent $69 billion acquisition of California-based mega-developer Activision Blizzard King. In November, Xbox head Phil Spencer that the company was "talking to other partners" to potentially launch a mobile store.
The move sets the stage for a new competition between Microsoft and both Google and Apple, since most mobile games are sold and downloaded through their respective app stores. Bond told Bloomberg that the new Microsoft mobile store "goes truly across devices -- where who you are, your library, your identity, your rewards travel with you versus being locked to a single ecosystem."
The move sets the stage for a new competition between Microsoft and both Google and Apple, since most mobile games are sold and downloaded through their respective app stores. Bond told Bloomberg that the new Microsoft mobile store "goes truly across devices -- where who you are, your library, your identity, your rewards travel with you versus being locked to a single ecosystem."
I'll have to dig out my Windows phone (Score:5, Funny)
Re:I'll have to dig out my Windows phone (Score:4, Informative)
As one who was hyped for MeeGo back then, I SHALL NEVER FORGIVE!
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Its almost like these are obvious tax write offs like the Windows Phone, the purchase of quality cell phone makers, and Zune....
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You mean the same way they left the app store market, the games market, the hardware market, the anti malware market, etc?
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Is it compatible with my Kin? How about PlaysForSure?
Re:I'll have to dig out my Windows phone (Score:5, Funny)
So I can try them out
Only if it's a mobile-game store. If it's a mobile game-store, you'll need a car. :-)
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Hmm, Uber-Games...
Tentpole (Score:2)
Re:Tentpole (Score:4, Informative)
It means the first thing that you put out which holds up the rest of the enterprise. establishes a beachhead so to speak.
Re: Tentpole (Score:3)
An erection inside one's pants; a woody that is visible because it bulges one's clothing.
I woke up hearing someone knock on the door. Forgetting about the morning wood phenomenon, I went to answer it and after about ten seconds realized that she was totally staring at the tent pole bulging in my boxers.
by PMax July 29, 2008
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No one ever had that sort of tent pole when hearing about Microsoft.
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I think it's a pretty apt comparison. It's the only thing solid that keeps a flimsy and barely stable thing upright. Should it ever fail or be removed, the whole thing deflates and comes down.
Re: Tentpole (Score:1)
Again? (Score:2)
Again?
Yes, again (Score:2)
How big a sucker do you have to be to expect this to work out? Everybody should know how this is going to go.
Only in Europe? (Score:4, Interesting)
It's the jurisdiction that would support running 'real' MS Edge on an iPhone rather than Webkit.
MS really need to get their shit together. So you can run touch apps on Windows 11, they launch an Android runtime and then kill it and now declare web is the future.
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Web browsers, plural. Seems like it will work on any modern browser, not just Edge. How is a good question, considering you're not allowed to install from outside app store on apple's walled garden without jailbreaking the device. I can see this easily working on android, you just have to give your browser of choice permission to be able to install applications.
Preferable to fighting Steam (Score:2)
I bet they think there is more of an opening taking on Apple and Google in the mobile space rather than try and really fight Valve for the desktop.
Two ex-Microsoft employees built an empire inside their former employers walls and now they are also giving Linux gaming credentials.
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They spent last half a decade trying to slowly erode Valve's position. To be fair, gamepass is sorta kinda popular. But that seems to be the only real inroad they managed.
Being a massive company, it makes sense taking a shot at the rest of the gaming and application market.
King makes a ton of money (Score:3)
King's mobile games outperform everything else MS acquired from Activision. No big surprise that MS wants a piece of the microtransaction pie.
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They didn't shut down King.
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Maybe, but I doubt it. Candy Crush alone brings in around $1 billion per year, sometimes more. It probably takes only a handful of underpaid coders to maintain the product. It's the perfect cash cow. Just like they won't get rid of the team working on Diablo Immortal.
They might trim a few people, but they won't kill King or fold it into another studio.
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Maybe, but I doubt it. Candy Crush alone brings in around $1 billion per year, sometimes more. It probably takes only a handful of underpaid coders to maintain the product. It's the perfect cash cow. Just like they won't get rid of the team working on Diablo Immortal.
A few facts about King: It has about 2000 employees based in Europe with headquarters in London and Stockholm. I doubt that King employees are paid less than their American counterparts at MS. I am fairly certain that Swedish rules forbid the type of crunch that is common to video game development.
They might trim a few people, but they won't kill King or fold it into another studio.
MS now owns all the IP. To me, MS is arrogant enough to think they can replace King with all their newly acquired developers. Have all the former Starfield devs work on mobile games now would be the thinking as th
So all this comes down to one thing (Score:3)
Yawn... (Score:2)
Cool! (Score:2)
Can't wait to not go there!