Microsoft is reportedly considering allowing advertisers to insert ads into free Xbox games. This program would be launched in the third quarter of this year and may not appeal to players.
While Xbox consoles currently only allow ads on the home screen of their consoles, Business Insider reports that Microsoft is looking to work with adtech companies to create a system that would allow brands and advertisers to show ads in Xbox free-to-play games to buy and place.
In-game ads are currently limited as developers need to integrate them as in-game content during game development or post-launch. However, Microsoft’s program would allow game developers to do so Specify specific places in the game where ads can appearfor example on billboards in a racing game.
LDiscussions about this apparently started a few years ago, but has accelerated in recent years due to the launch of the Xbox Series X and S and the popularity of free-to-play games. You can also discover our selection of the 10 best free games on Xbox.
Paid games are not affected by ads
According to Business Insider sources Only free-to-play games like Fortnite could host ads. It remains to be seen whether advertisers will be willing to embrace this idea and how they will be able to personalize their advertising according to the players. Such an addition could therefore raise privacy issues for gamers who might not like their habits being spied on by Microsoft.
According to BI sources, Microsoft could implement this feature as early as the third quarter of this year. It’s interesting to note that Microsoft does not want to share in the advertising revenue at this point in time, Instead, the revenue is to be shared between the game developer and the adtech company. While we wait to hear more, we know that Microsoft is currently working on other new features for the Xbox, such as a family subscription to Xbox Game Pass.
Source: Business Insider