Games have been the most lucrative category on App Store since its inception back in 2008 and now Apple is thought to be working on a subscription service for games.
Citing five anonymous sources, Cheddar‘s Alex Heath reported Monday that the Cupertino technology giant has been discussing its plan with select game developers who would like to be part of a new subscription service.
For a set monthly fee, customers would have unlimited access to third-party gaming titles. It’s unclear how much the subscription would cost or what kind of games Apple might offer.
The company has also discussed partnering with developers as a publisher, according to two people familiar with the talks, which could signal Apple’s ambition to assume distribution, marketing and other related costs for select games.
The service is still in the early stages of development and Apple could ultimately decide to abandon it. Mobile gaming is expected to become a $100 billion industry by 2021, according to the gaming and esports intelligence firm Newzoo.
This bit is also interesting:
If Apple functioned like a publisher for games it sold through a subscription, it could entice developers to create exclusive games for the service by undercutting the fees they would normally pay to an outside firm for user acquisition, marketing and other distribution-related costs.
As you know, the company currently takes a 30% cut of App Store purchases but lowers that fee to 15 percent after the first year of a subscription.
I wouldn’t put much faith in this report because even though Alex Heath has written for a number of publications, he’s never been a reliable source of confidential Apple information.
Unless someone corroborates his report, I’m calling BS on the story.
That said, such a service would serve Apple’s strategy well. The company expects to double its 2016 Services revenue by 2020 and is thought to be launching several new services this year, including a magazine-subscription service and a video-streaming service.
Moreover, The Information claimed last summer that Apple is working on a package combining original video programming, music and digital magazines for a single flat monthly fee.
Thoughts?