Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s Executive President of gaming recently announced ahead of the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2018 on Sunday that the company is in the process of building a cloud-based streaming service for gamers. The cloud-based service will fundamentally function in the same way as Amazon Video or Netflix, offering access to a wide range of games from a host of developers which will allow gamers to stream the content on any device.
Cloud streaming will help Microsoft unlock a variety of opportunities for gaming on mobile and small devices, as smartphones are customarily known for fleeting game experiences.
The gaming giant isn’t the only company to show some interest in pursuing a cloud streaming service for games. Electronic Arts (EA Games) revealed at E3 2018 that the company is also developing a streaming game service that would enable its subscribers to play high-end games on smart TV’s, mobile phones, and low-end laptops such as Chromebooks.
For the meantime, Sony already offers its customers a cloud-based gaming service, called PlayStation Now.
The upcoming cloud-based streaming service might also be a move to incentivise its game developers to use Microsoft’s cloud services when developing their content. This is a big move for Microsoft, considering that over 90% of the world’s largest gaming companies use AWS (Amazon Web Services) to offload online game infrastructure tasks.
Microsoft’s renewed attention into its gaming software and its services reflects its overall strategy to double down on software development.
Following the launch of the Xbox One X console back in November 2017, Microsoft revealed its plans to expand its video gaming unit by turning its focus in the direction of software and services and away from its hardware, which has been constantly beaten by Sony’s PlayStation.
