(AFP) – A fledgling segment, cloud gaming, a twist on the model of platforms like Netflix in a video game version, has been the focus of attention since Britain’s Competition Authority (CMA) decided on Tuesday to block the mega- Merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard.
Here’s an update on this activity, which is expected to grow strongly in the years to come.
. What is “cloud gaming”?
“Cloud gaming” or “cloud video game” in French offers the possibility, via an online subscription, of playing a game on any screen (PC, smartphone, connected TV, etc.) without having to own the physical version of the one in question Title.
The games are processed on remote computer servers (“cloud”) and streamed directly to the user’s device for smooth play.
The success of dematerialization made possible by high-speed Internet access is embodied in particular by the phenomenon of Fortnite, one of the most popular video games in the world with almost 200 million players, accessible only online through a dedicated platform.
. What does this market represent?
According to the company Newzoo, the cloud gaming market could reach $8.17 billion in 2025, a sum that more than tripled compared to 2022 ($2.38 billion).
While the growth potential is significant, this segment is still in its infancy in a global video game market valued at more than $300 billion by consultancy Accenture.
31.7 million gamers used a paid “cloud gaming” service in 2022. A number that, according to Newzoo, will almost triple in 2025 to 86.9 million players.
. Who are the main actors?
According to the UK Competition Authority (CMA), Microsoft is making 25 million subscribers to its Game Pass service, which offers unlimited play of more than a hundred games (sometimes brand new) for a monthly subscription of €10.
If Sony and Nintendo have launched a similar service, the offer has “absolutely nothing to do” with that of the American group in terms of the catalog of available games and the performance of the “cloud” infrastructure offered, Julien Pillot explains to AFP. Economist specializing in cultural economics.
Other tech giants like Amazon (Luna) or Google (Stadia) have also entered this niche, with much less success.
Amazon, which owns the hugely popular live game streaming platform Twitch and the world’s leading cloud computing provider AWS, is still not identified as a player with “industrial credibility” to offer video games,” emphasizes Julien Pillot.
In September 2022, Google shut down its Stadia platform, just three years after launch, for lack of attractive games.
Other players are Nvidia (GeForce Now) or Apple (Arcade) and Netflix for mobile games.
. A Microsoft / Activision merger: What implications for the “cloud gaming” market?
Despite the CMA’s decision to block this record-breaking operation at $69 billion, the experts surveyed do not expect any significant impact on the “cloud gaming” space.
“This might slightly affect Microsoft’s willingness to invest in its service, but the acquisition (of Activision Blizzard) was not a prerequisite for having Activision games on its +Game Pass+,” estimates Newzoo analyst Tom Wijman. from AFP.
Activision does not currently allow its games, like the hugely popular Call of Duty, to be streamed through a “cloud gaming” service.
“It seems unlikely” that this will happen “in the near future”, predicts Joost Rietveld, a professor at University College London.
“Cloud gaming still makes up only a fraction of the entire gaming industry. I think this acquisition could give this industry an always-welcome boost,” he adds nonetheless.