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Forums - Microsoft Discussion - What are XBLG subscribers paying $50 a year for?

Barozi on 19 May 2010
Profcrab said:
Barozi said:
Profcrab said:
axumblade said:
Barozi said:
I heard there are also people who pay for MMO subscriptions every month....

Great point actually.

I know we sell cards at best buy that are generally about on average 15 dollars for 30 days. So why do PC gamers pay $180 a month for MMO's?

MMO subscriptions are another story.  Matchmaking servers don't host the games.  MMO servers host games with up to thousands of players on at any particular moment.  MMO developers also have to continually add content to the game to keep people interested, where as the games for XBL and PSN are sold by other publishers (or first party, but either way you are paying for content separately that then connects to that service).  Now, some MMOs have chosen other routes to try to pay for these servers, selling in game items, etc., but either way, their operating costs, per player, are higher than XBL or PSN.  Now, if you are super successful, like WoW is now, how Everquest was, and how Lineage is in Korea, you can rake in big cash.  If your subscribitions take a heavy hit or never take off at all, you can be in dire straits real fast.

I give that post a 9.5.

What's the difference between paying a developer to improve the servers or gaming content and paying a company to improve the online service ?

I do understand that MMO subscriptions need to be more expensive, but in the end whether online service or MMO, you pay for being able to play and for more content.

I'm just saying that the costs and how they are structured are different and for different reasons.  MMOs are not really analogous to XBL, PSN, etc. 

I give that post a 9.3.

and I'm just here to beat shio with his own logic :P



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mrstickball on 19 May 2010

First off, I don't understand comparing XBL to Steam...They are different services altogether.

Secondly, you pay for an overall better system. XBL has more games, better games, and vastly more content. Microsoft has usually been first when it comes to some sort of new integration like Netflix OnDemand (which is beastly).

Gold members also get better deals on some games, which subsidizes some of the costs of the service.

Ultimately, the service is built on the back of the revenue that gold earns. Although it can be frustrating that so many things (like online MP) require gold, the fact is that silver members still get access to tons of extra content that PSN cannot touch, and Wii doesn't have.

Why do you think that both Sony and Nintendo have hinted they may charge for their services? The fact is, its a good business model, and even the free companies realize that they are getting hurt where MS is making its mark.



Back from the dead, I'm afraid.

nightsurge on 19 May 2010

I think it's safe to say that when an OP makes a thread and isn't seen in it again for near 50 posts that this was flame bait, no? I mean it's filled with misinformation and arguments we've seen 50,000,000,000,000x before.



yo_john117 on 19 May 2010
Xmanny2009X said:
yo_john117 said:

Because of Halo basically, its worth every penny to play one of the best multiplayer experiences ever!  I would probably pay even more just to play Halo, it really is that good of a game (of course MW2 isn't that bad either, but when Reach comes out, thats it!)

Oh lord not again.

No no, that statement should be used for this overtalked about topic.



C_Hollomon on 19 May 2010

They say the XBL fees is for cross game chat and better match making I guess. To me XBL fees is use to make up for the money lost to RROD. I don't see any difference between XBL and PSN. They both have movies, demos, and online gaming is the same to me. But hey MS don't like giving things away for free so it is what it is.



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nightsurge on 19 May 2010
C_Hollomon said:
They say the XBL fees is for cross game chat and better match making I guess. To me XBL fees is use to make up for the money lost to RROD. I don't see any difference between XBL and PSN. They both have movies, demos, and online gaming is the same to me. But hey MS don't like giving things away for free so it is what it is.

PSN has yet to make any profit at all.  So I guess Free isn't always the best option.  Contrary to what people may think, it does cost an extremely large amount of money to run these services.



Nitrous_18 on 19 May 2010
nightsurge said:
C_Hollomon said:
They say the XBL fees is for cross game chat and better match making I guess. To me XBL fees is use to make up for the money lost to RROD. I don't see any difference between XBL and PSN. They both have movies, demos, and online gaming is the same to me. But hey MS don't like giving things away for free so it is what it is.

PSN has yet to make any profit at all.  So I guess Free isn't always the best option.  Contrary to what people may think, it does cost an extremely large amount of money to run these services.

What do you mean 'Free isn't the best option'? Yes I agree it does cost a lot of money to keep the service free but at the same time Sony are aware of this and have their premium service which can cover that. Also how do we the gamers suffer if the Psn service if Free? Because remember its not about how much the Brands gains or loses in money, its about how much we the consumers are paying for there services.



nightsurge on 19 May 2010
Nitrous_18 said:
nightsurge said:
C_Hollomon said:
They say the XBL fees is for cross game chat and better match making I guess. To me XBL fees is use to make up for the money lost to RROD. I don't see any difference between XBL and PSN. They both have movies, demos, and online gaming is the same to me. But hey MS don't like giving things away for free so it is what it is.

PSN has yet to make any profit at all.  So I guess Free isn't always the best option.  Contrary to what people may think, it does cost an extremely large amount of money to run these services.

What do you mean 'Free isn't the best option'? Yes I agree it does cost a lot of money to keep the service free but at the same time Sony are aware of this and have their premium service which can cover that. Also how do we the gamers suffer if the Psn service if Free? Because remember its not about how much the Brands gains or loses in money, its about how much we the consumers are paying for there services.

Because the free PSN is not as good as the for pay XBL and because of the losses they are adding the premium services.



A Bad Clown on 19 May 2010

First off, at the cheapest it's 35$ for a year. Also, subscribers get alot of stuff early. Netflix and Cross- Game chat for example. And Halo, lest we forget Halo. I'm waiting for Sony's priced service where you have to pay for Cross-game chat and early acess.



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Nitrous_18 on 19 May 2010
nightsurge said:
Nitrous_18 said:
nightsurge said:
C_Hollomon said:
They say the XBL fees is for cross game chat and better match making I guess. To me XBL fees is use to make up for the money lost to RROD. I don't see any difference between XBL and PSN. They both have movies, demos, and online gaming is the same to me. But hey MS don't like giving things away for free so it is what it is.

PSN has yet to make any profit at all.  So I guess Free isn't always the best option.  Contrary to what people may think, it does cost an extremely large amount of money to run these services.

What do you mean 'Free isn't the best option'? Yes I agree it does cost a lot of money to keep the service free but at the same time Sony are aware of this and have their premium service which can cover that. Also how do we the gamers suffer if the Psn service if Free? Because remember its not about how much the Brands gains or loses in money, its about how much we the consumers are paying for there services.

Because the free PSN is not as good as the for pay XBL and because of the losses they are adding the premium services.

Whether or not Live is better than Psn is opinion related as far as I am concerned.

I agree that Sony are putting forward the premium service due to their losses in profit over the years. But I personally think they hit the nail on the head with this idea. This is because Sony if they wanted could have charged for online services like Microsoft. But they didn't which is a smart choice since the cost of the ps3 is quite large as it is. By doing this people who buy a ps3 can still experience the full potential of the system right out of the box. Then for the extra's this is where premium service comes in.