Microsoft plans to launch its own mobile game shop in July, offering first-party games like Candy Crush and Minecraft.
Microsoft said at the Bloomberg Technology Summit on Thursday that it will open its own mobile game shop in July.
The company’s first-party portfolio, which includes games like Candy Crush and Minecraft, will be available on the mobile shop when it launches, according to Xbox president Sarah Bond. After that, Microsoft intends to let other publishers use the mobile shop.
Bond declared, “We’re going to start on the web.” We are taking that action because it enables us to create an experience that is universally accessible on all devices and in all countries, regardless of closed ecosystem store regulations. From there, we plan to expand.
They would offer an alternative to Apple and Google, who levy a 30% fee on sales, by launching the shop online rather than through an app.
Microsoft has been discussing the debut of an Xbox mobile game store for some time now, and this is the official announcement.
The CEO of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer, stated in December of last year that the business was in talks with partners to open an Xbox mobile store and that it would happen shortly.
When they announced that they would be acquiring Activision Blizzard in 2022, it was the first indication of a mobile store. Microsoft had stated in documents that expanding Activision Blizzard’s mobile gaming business was one of the company’s main goals in acquiring the company.
Activision and King’s mobile games will be part of a new “Xbox Mobile Platform,” according to Microsoft’s CMA papers from October 2022.
They want to offer a mobile app store option to Apple and Google in the US and internationally, despite the EU’s Digital Marketing Act (DMA) requiring the two to open their stores.