Microsoft is reportedly continuing its push of the new “Xbox Everywhere” initiative by producing a streaming device along with a dedicated app for Samsung smart TVs that would allow for direct game streaming.
These details come from a VentureBeat report, stating that the alleged new streaming device will be similar to that of the various other streaming “sticks” that other companies have released; think Google’s Chromecast, Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, and Roku’s products.
As for the TV app, Microsoft is allegedly in partnership with Samsung to produce an app that would work natively on Samsung TVs, thus allowing owners of Samsung TVs to be able to gain access to the same functionality that the streaming device would have. without the need for said additional hardware.
Just recently, the VP and Head of Product at Xbox Cloud Gaming, Catherine Gluckstein, revealed that across 26 countries worldwide, 10 million people have streamed games using the Xbox Cloud Gaming service. This has been achieved across over 6,000 different devices, including mobile devices, laptops, and even more unique products such as the Steam Deck.
Gluckstein promised that Microsoft sees this as “just the beginning” for Xbox Cloud Gaming and is working to expand and improve the service as time goes on. This also includes expanding support for the service out to even more countries.
With the aforementioned Xbox Everywhere initiative, Microsoft is seeking to take the need for dedicated hardware out of the equation. While streaming does have limitations that gaming on a traditional machine does not have, it still is the more convenient option (when available). It’s this fact that Microsoft is banking on to further push Xbox Cloud Gaming and Xbox Game Pass into more and more people’s lives.
While this could result in shifting some people away from the thought of buying a console, like a new Xbox Series system, Microsoft will still be getting their money by means of their subscription. Thus, for all intents and purposes, Microsoft sees a customer as a customer, no matter what device they’re playing on.
Source: GamesIndustry