SAN FRANCISCO - Google on Monday unveiled a subscription service for games and apps on Android-powered mobile devices in a direct challenge to Apple Arcade.
Google Play Pass promised access to hundreds of "awesome" games free of ads or hawked virtual wares at the same $4.99 monthly subscription price as that of the Arcade service Apple launched last week for iOS devices.
"The Play Pass collection spans hundreds of titles, from games that help you unwind to apps that power productivity," Google product manager Austin Shoemaker said in an online post.
"Play Pass is coming to Android devices in the US this week, and we'll be bringing it to additional countries soon."
Some of the game titles included in the launch will be Terraria, Monument Valley, Risk and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
It will also include apps such as Accuweather which are free of in-app purchases, upfront payments or advertising.
Google said it will add new games and apps to the service each month. The internet giant also enticed people with a temporary offer to let them subscribe at a reduced price for the first year.
"Play Pass helps encourage people to try new experiences they would not have otherwise," said Maria Sayans, chief executive of Monument Valley maker Ustwo games.
Play Pass was announced just days after the launch of Apple Arcade, which rides a trend of video games played by subscribers instead of purchased as downloads or disks.
Apple Arcade offers unlimited access for a flat monthly price to more than 100 exclusive games uninterrupted by ads or the hawking of virtual goods.
Arcade, and now Play Pass, fit into a subscription model that is gaining traction, according to analysts.
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source: news.abs-cbn.com
SAN FRANCISCO, United States - Apple's entry into online games with a low-cost subscription plan is expected to bring a fresh set of consumers into gaming and potentially reshape the multibillion-dollar market.
Apple Arcade, which launches Thursday, rides a trend of video games played by subscribers instead of purchased as downloads or disks, and its $4.99 monthly price could wind up boosting ranks of players.
"My hunch is that it's a good thing for the market overall," said NPD Group games executive director Mat Piscatella.
"Apple Arcade might eat into free-to-play titles, or it might expand the market overall and attract many new players that haven't yet been drawn to paying for content on mobile."
Apple Arcade differs from rivals by offering unlimited access for a flat monthly price to more than 100 exclusive games uninterrupted by ads or the hawking of virtual goods.
"The games themselves don't have in-game purchase mechanics; instead, there is a beginning, middle and end," said Wedbush Securities equity research managing director Michael Pachter.
"That's a different type of game than free-to-play, so I think there is definitely an audience."
Converting phone owners
Arcade fits into a subscription model that is gaining traction, according to analysts.
Subscription services are offered by console rivals Xbox and PlayStation, while Google is set to launch a Stadia streaming play service in November.
"The old model was paid download, but that died when free-to-play was invented," Pachter said.
"(Arcade) is not much of a threat to the conventional games business, and will likely convert some mobile phone owners to gamers over time."
The US video game industry generated a record $43.4 billion in revenue in 2018, according to the Entertainment Software Association and The NPD Group.
A drawback for Arcade is that it doesn't support games playable on popular consoles or Windows-powered personal computers, said analyst Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy.
Game makers also face the challenge of tailoring each title to play equally well on Apple's various devices, which is tougher than crafting software for one type of hardware such as a popular console.
Details of what incentives or revenue shares Apple is giving game developers have not been disclosed.
"Apple is taking advantage of the power of its devices to attract developers for a share of the $5 monthly fee, and the early providers are going to make good coin by participating," Pachter said.
Alexandre De Rochefort of Gameloft, a studio producing games for Apple Arcade, declined to discuss the revenue share but said it would likely be "a valuable initiative for Gameloft, our partners, and our players" as the economics of gaming shift.
"On the mobile side, we think that the free-to-play business model has reached near maturity," De Rochefort said.
"If you look at what is happening in music, in movies and TV shows, the subscription business model is getting very popular, and somehow the gaming industry is still a bit behind on this topic. It is great for the industry to have new alternatives, and we are convinced that the subscription-based model will bring new experiences for new players."
Gen Z
Apple promised new, exclusive Arcade games will be playable across iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and Apple TV, potentially attracting younger audiences.
"I think the service will appeal to parents and to a new wave of Gen Z consumers that identify with unique and authentic content experiences on smartphones," said IHS Markit Technology head of games research Piers Harding-Rolls.
"These consumers may also be tempted to buy into the Apple ecosystem with the cheaper and more youthful iPhone 11."
Apple will begin shipping new iPhone 11 models on Friday as it emphasizes television streaming and gaming services to wean itself off dependence on selling hardware.
Price appeared to be a key consideration as the tech giant reduced the entry-level price for the iPhone 11 to $699.
"Overall this games service strategy supports Apple's ecosystem of devices," Harding-Rolls said.
"It will attract a niche share of the over one billion active iOS device user-base and, given Apple's huge audience that is likely to result in a games subscription service bigger than most that have come before it."
source: news.abs-cbn.com
CUPERTINO, California - With Hollywood stars galore, Apple unveiled its streaming video plans Monday along with news and game subscription offerings as part of an effort to shift its focus to digital content and services to break free of its reliance on iPhone sales.
Director Steven Spielberg, TV host Oprah Winfrey, and Hollywood stars Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carrell made appearances at the event that brings Apple into direct competition with Netflix and the rest of the entertainment sector.
"We all want to be heard, but we also need to listen... to be able to harness our hopes and dreams and heal our divisions," Winfrey told a packed audience in the Steve Jobs Theater on Apple's campus in Silicon Valley.
"That is why I have joined forces with Apple. The Apple platform allows me to do what I do, in whole new way."
The Apple TV+ service, an on-demand, ad-free subscription service, will launch this year in 100 countries, the company said.
"We believe deeply in the power of creativity," Apple chief executive Tim Cook said.
"Great stories can change the world. We feel we can contribute something important to our culture and to our society through great storytelling."
Apple revealed only a few of the programs to launch but announced it was working with celebrities on both sides of the camera, including Octavia Spencer, J.J. Abrams, Jason Momoa, and M. Night Shyamalan.
The new content will be available on an upgraded Apple TV app, which will be on smart television sets and third-party platforms including Roku and Amazon's Fire TV.
Apple will also allow consumers to subscribe to third-party services like HBO and Starz from the same application. The cost of the service, along with financial deals with content creators, were not disclosed.
Apple is aiming to leverage its position with some 900 people worldwide who use at least one of its devices. But some suggested Apple's path may be harder than anticipated.
"I don't want to know which famous people Apple has signed up. I want to know if the annual budget is $1bn or $10bn," tweeted Benedict Evans, a Silicon Valley investor and blogger.
"Getting audience for a TV platform is like orbital mechanics - the only way to go up is to burn more fuel."
While some view Apple's move as a reinvention of the iconic company, analyst Richard Windsor said on his Radio Free Mobile blog that the video service "is very unlikely to ever be big enough to wean Apple off of its long addiction to selling hardware."
APPLE NEWS+
Meanwhile, a new Apple News+ service at a cost of $9.99 per month will include the Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal, digital news sites and more than 300 magazine titles including Rolling Stone, Time, National Geographic Wired and The New Yorker.
"We think Apple News+ will be great for customers and great for publishers," Cook said.
Apple News+ was launched Monday in the US and Canada in English and French and will be available later this year in Britain and Australia, the company said.
Separately, the company said it was launching a new game subscription service called Apple Arcade later this year with at least 100 titles at launch.
"Apple Arcade will introduce an innovative way to access a collection of brand new games that will not be available on any other mobile platform or in any other subscription service," Apple said in a statement.
"Rather than pay up front for each game, a subscription to Apple Arcade will give players the opportunity to try any game in the service without risk."
The game service will be available in 150 countries, with pricing to be announced later.
The move comes as Apple shifts to emphasize digital content and other services to offset a pullback in the once-sizzling smartphone market, and with many news organizations struggling to monetize their online services.
SELLING PRIVACY
Apple sought to highlight privacy and data protection for its new services, responding to consumer concerns about personal information bought and sold by Silicon Valley firms.
It said advertisers would not be able to track the activity of subscribers to the news service and its Arcade would have no ads, ad tracking or additional purchases.
On additional services, Apple said it would offer a credit card in partnership with Goldman Sachs to be integrated with Apple Pay and that digital payments would be launched for 3 transit systems in the United States.
Those signing up will get a physical card and one for a digital wallet, with the 2 companies pledging to refrain from sharing or selling data to third parties for marketing and advertising.
Apple Card features that could shake-up the credit card industry, included not charging fees, giving users cash back on purchases, and providing tools for people to better manage their debt.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
