Google Stadia will shut down in January 2023, company will refund hardware purchases: all the details

Google Stadia to Shut Down in January 2023, Company to Refund Hardware Purchases: All Details

Google on Thursday said it is shutting down Stadia, a cloud video game service it launched three years ago, so that people can access console-quality play as easily as email.

“It hasn’t gained the traction with users we expected so we’ve made the difficult decision to discontinue our Stadia streaming service,” Google Vice President Phil Harrison said in a statement. blog post,

Google said it will refund purchases of Stadia hardware, such as controllers, as well as game content purchased through its online store, and players will have access to the service until January 18 next year.

“They had a good idea and a bad business model,” Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said of Stadia.

“They tried to offer the service as a subscription without the game.”

Meanwhile, Xbox-maker Microsoft offered a rival Game Pass service “with a ton of games,” making it a more attractive option for players, Pachter said.

The analyst said Game Pass has around 25 million subscribers, while Stadia has less than a million.

Microsoft is considered a streaming video game heavyweight with its Xbox Game Pass service and its large community of players using its console and desktop computers.

The Redmond, Washington-based company also has a stable of video game studios.

And when Microsoft makes the Xbox video game console, it’s leading a shift to let people play titles on Internet-connected devices of their choice with titles hosted in the cloud.

Microsoft recently announced that the ability to play Xbox games will be built into Samsung Smart TVs in its latest cloud gaming move.

“We’re looking to bring the joy and community of gaming to everyone on the planet, and bringing the Xbox app to Smart TVs is another step in making our vision a reality,” said Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft Gaming, in a post.

Microsoft entered the big leagues in one of the world’s most lucrative markets earlier this year with a $69 billion (about Rs 5,62,730 crore) deal to acquire video game maker Activision Blizzard – the biggest in the region’s history. declare.

Amazon launched its Luna video game streaming service to the general public in the United States earlier this year, aiming to expand its multi-dimensional empire into the booming gaming industry.

Luna allows players to directly access online games without the need for a console as part of cloud gaming technology which is seen as the future direction of the industry.

Luna rivals Microsoft and PlayStation maker Sony as well as Stadia.


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