SvennoJ said:
They don't need to add fees, just undercut the other streaming services with GPU. To play those MS games on other streaming services you need to pay them and pay MS for playing the games. Either by buying them or via subscription. Now comes xCloud with a lower overall cost since MS can easily undercut them already owning the biggest server farm (which the other streaming services likely rent for their own service, like Sony uses Azure as well). |
I've heard people say that this is bad because Game Pass will increase in price more and more until people are paying a stupid amount because they're locked into the service, now I'm hearing that it's bad because Game Pass will undercut rivals, Lol. As it stands right now, Game Pass Ultimate is $16.99 a month, GeForce Now is either $9.99 a month for the non-free tier or $19.99 a month for the highest tier. Boosteroid is $10.60 a month. Nware is $10.08 a month for Basic and $12.33 a month for Premium.
xCloud's subscription plan is currently being undercut by Boosteroid, Nware and GeForce's 2nd Tier. You're right though, you need to purchase the title to stream the title for Boosteroid, Nware and GeForce Now so that is one advantage that Microsoft has for xCloud with it being attached to Game Pass (if you even want Game Pass) but others have advantages too (more on that later).
Game Pass PC is coming to GeForce Now as well...Despite the fact that GeForce Now runs better in every way than xCloud so why the hell would people then use xCloud? PC Game Pass on its own (no xCloud) would be $9.99 a month and GeForce Now's 2nd tier would be $9.99 a month. Considering GeForce's Now is better than xCloud, the extra $2.99 may be worth spending.
xCloud being attached to Game Pass has not helped it to dominate anything thus far, there are numerous Microsoft emails from the trial expressing disappointment in its metrics, in its usage, xCloud makes Microsoft a loss based on how much it costs to maintain vs the usage. Microsoft shown the courts data which showed that the vast majority of xCloud users were only using it to play games whilst a native version downloads, Lol.
Nobody gives a f*ck about xCloud right now.
xCloud runs at a loss, xCloud does not run on Azure, it runs on Xbox Hardware placed into Azure Datacentres. That means GeForce Now is better than xCloud technologically, that meant Stadia was better than xCloud technologically, that means they can't just spin up their dozens of Azure server farms and dominate anything, they need to physically place Xbox Hardware into every single one of these locations, they need to build Xbox hardware, it needs to be the same hardware being sold to consumers, as such, it gives Microsoft's rivals an advantage in technology (better framerate, resolution, input lag) and gives rivals an advantage in being able to upgrade quicker than Microsoft while Microsoft only upgrade once per console gen.
GeForce doesn't rent, they have their own data centres, Ubitus partners with Google Cloud and Boosteroid partners with ASUS. Don't know who Nware uses. But just because Microsoft has Azure Datacentres doesn't mean Xbox has no costs associated with using them, once again, xCloud runs at a loss. All of these companies have data centres in the key locations. We have no clue how many datacentres have Xbox hardware installed into them but we do know that UK, Microsoft's 2nd largest market, has a concurrent maximum of 5,000 users in xCloud...So it can't be much.
Xbox holds the content, which nobody was getting to begin with, and now they are, thanks to the contracts, Lol.
Last edited by Ryuu96 - on 13 July 2023
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