How Xbox Seeks To Corner The Mobile Gaming Market With Xbox Cloud Gaming And “Fortnite”
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Xbox is a gaming giant in its own right. From its beginning in 2001 and started by computer software tyrant Microsoft, the Xbox company has grown with its consumers and vice of versa. As the world of gaming continued to evolve, suddenly it meant that Xbox had to evolve with its consumer base. With mobile games on the rise, Xbox is seeking to corner this expanding market by releasing a separate line of mobile consoles and games.
According to The Verge’s Tom Warren, “Microsoft is building an Xbox mobile store to directly offer games on mobile devices, challenging Apple and Google.” Microsoft was said to have hinted at a “next-generation” store it would “build for games” earlier this year. Currently, Microsoft has quietly revealed details of the plans in filings with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
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While the decision to expand into the mobile gaming market can be seen as a commercial, the choice to venture into the mobile game market might be seen as ground-breaking.
Considering that Microsoft does not have a foothold in the mobile gaming community, their choice to create their own platform and support system has a chance of circumventing Apple’s and Google Play’s policies blocking third-party app stores on iOS systems. However, Warren is quick to state how it’s too early for Xbox to envision competing with the already established competitors.
Yet Xbox seems to have faith in themselves holding their own considering their $68.7 billion buyout of Activision Blizzard, the company most known for their “mobile megahit Candy Crush Saga”. As Kyle Bar of Gizmodo details, Xbox acquiring the rights of Candy Crush and the Call of Duty mobile games is a promising start, but not enough to guarantee success:
“Microsoft might have a friend in Epic Games, which recently had a spat with Apple. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney argued Apple should facilitate rival app stores or third-party payment methods. Xbox Cloud Gaming already allows users to play Fortnite on practically any mobile device. [This alliance] could set up one of the biggest new competitors for Google and Apple…. Of course, such an endeavor could also fail spectacularly.”
With so much on the line, not just financially, failure is not an option for Xbox. While a multibillion-dollar buyout is note and newsworthy, press alone shouldn’t be the only thing a company relies on. With little information and big promises on Xbox’s side, the company has so much on the line. Not just for their company, but for consumers who have made mobile gaming the profitable market it is today.
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