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Microsoft CEO doesn't think iOS is not open enough for Xbox gaming

Microsoft does not support native Xcloud for iPhone

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In a new interview, Microsoft's Phil Spencer discusses how Microsoft brings its Xbox games to new platforms — but he doesn't think they'll find a home on iOS.

Microsoft is expanding beyond the Xbox and Windows gaming consoles by releasing video games for the Nintendo Switch and Sony PS5. So it makes sense that if a company is trying to get its games into the hands of as many people as possible, it should bring those games to the iPhone.

But this is not so — at least for now.

Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, said in a new interview with The Verge that Apple hasn't provided the company with an effective way to monetize Xbox games on its platform.

“We have no way to monetize Xbox Cloud Gaming on iOS. I think the proposal put forward by Apple — and I think Sarah Bond's comments on this were correct — does not go far enough to open up “, he says about concessions under the UK Digital Markets Act.

Of course, he doesn't comment on the fact that — as of iOS 17.4 — Apple now allows single app streaming. Apple's change of what's allowed for streaming game services will allow Microsoft to create a reading app that doesn't charge any fees other than what the user purchases in the app.

Ultimately, Microsoft wants to have its own app store everywhere Spencer believes mobile games should work the same way they do on desktop.

“We will continue to work with regulators, as well as Apple and Google, to create space for alternative storefronts. I'm a big fan of the way Windows works and you have the Microsoft Store for Windows. , you have Steam, you have the Epic Games Store, you have GOG,” he says in an interview.

Microsoft has its own walled garden in the Xbox market. It charges game developers the same fees as the Apple App Store.

The company has repeatedly said that this is normal because Xbox hardware is being sold as a loss leader. There is no provision in US law requiring app stores to charge only if the hardware is subsidized by the app store on the platform.

“You have alternatives, and I think alternative ways of buying things benefit consumers and creators,” Spencer added.

Although Apple does not allow the creation of alternative marketplaces in the United States, the company will soon allow them access to the European Union with reservations. The move was made in accordance with the EU Digital Markets Act.

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