Microsoft will allow people to purchase and play video games through its Xbox app for Android starting in November, the corporate said Thursday.
The move is a direct results of a US judge's ruling on Monday Google may have to introduce alternatives to its Google Play app store on Android devices.
Google lost within the jury trial against Epic Games, the publisher of the favored Fortnite. Google said it intends to appeal and request a delay in implementing the choice.
“The court’s decision to open Google’s mobile store in the U.S. will enable greater choice and flexibility,” Sarah Bond, president of Microsoft’s Xbox gaming business, wrote in a post on X
Microsoft will allow Android users to “purchase Xbox games directly from the Xbox app on Android,” Bond wrote. For third party titles equivalent to B. the statement didn’t provide any information Electronic Arts or Take Two Interactive.
Google didn’t immediately comment.
Under the brand new model, Microsoft will have the ability to supply titles to gamers on Android without Google having to present up a percentage of revenue from in-app purchases.
Currently, users can download games to Xbox consoles via the Xbox app for Android, and those that pay for the Netflix-like Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions can stream games from the cloud in one other app.
The move shows that mobile devices remain a priority for Microsoft.
After a groundbreaking antitrust case before the US Department of Justice, Microsoft, unlike Google and Facebook owner, was slow to achieve a foothold with mobile apps Metaplatforms. During a court hearing last 12 months over the then-planned takeover of games maker Activision Blizzard, Phil Spencer, Microsoft's gaming CEO, said that the Xbox business needed mobile customers if it was to change into more relevant. Three months later, in October 2023, Microsoft accomplished its acquisition of Activision for $75.4 billion.
Epic Games offers a store for Android apps that users download from the private company's website. Some games in the shop support in-app purchases.
Bond didn’t disclose plans for the same move by Microsoft Apples iOS devices. In March, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, saying that limiting distribution to the App Store gave the corporate monopoly power. Currently, users with Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions can stream games via Apple and Google web browsers on iPhone or iPad.
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