Since its inception, Xbox Game Pass has only continued to raise the bar for what’s offered on the service. Even from its humble beginnings on Xbox, the library of games has easily doubled in size with a variety of games both big and small. Game Pass has also expanded into its own subsection on PC, as well as been integrated with xCloud game streaming on Android phones. Xbox has even partnered with TV subscriptions, at least as a trial, for anyone opting in to Game Pass for the first time.
Securing partnerships with Funimation, Disney+, and EA Play, it’s clear Microsoft wishes to move Xbox Game Pass far beyond just an expanding selection of games for fans. Other than additional game subscriptions, Microsoft could certainly make the Xbox Game Pass deal more enticing for people who aren’t necessarily gaming enthusiasts. Disney+ and Funimation are clearly just the beginning, as Game Pass could expand even further beyond just expanding its library.
For one thing, Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently expressed an interest in expanding game streaming even further. With Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, players already have the option to stream games to their mobile phones via Cloud gaming (formerly Project xCloud). In an interview with Stratechery, Phil Spencer spoke about the future of streaming games on Xbox Game Pass, and how streaming could expand beyond just a console or phone.
He mentioned that Xbox Game Pass could start integrating a sort-of streaming stick, so that players could stream to televisions like Stadia can. Chromecasts, Roku TVs, and Fire TV Sticks are some of the most common streaming hardware out there for TVs, so it’d be interesting to see how an Xbox stick might make its way into that market. Not to mention Google Stadia and Amazon Luna already integrate into those devices, which puts Xbox in a tough position from a Game Pass marketing perspective.
If Game Pass is going to use Cloud gaming as a method of introducing gaming to non-gamers, making them swap hardware is a tough ask already. Plus, introducing an Xbox Game Pass streaming app on those devices (directly competing with Stadia and Luna) would be challenging.
An interesting proposition for Game Pass would be to have more long-term deals with television streaming services. This has already been hinted at with the two-months-free deal with Funimation, as well as the free month of Disney+, but these are temporary deals. What would be more interesting is if Xbox Game Pass implemented a similar partnership to that of Hulu and Spotify. Spotify Premium now bundles with Hulu (ad-supported) at no additional charge, and even adds Showtime for student accounts as well.
Xbox Game Pass could potentially secure a similar partnership with a streaming service like Disney+ or Netflix to help expand its user base. Perhaps these introductory “free month” deals are a sign of what’s to come, potentially testing the Game Pass user base for interest in streaming service bundling. Disney+ would be an impressive partnership, considering Disney+ already has several high tier bundles with the aforementioned Hulu, as well as ESPN+ subscriptions. Partnering with Netflix would be particularly impressive, as the streaming giant doesn’t really have any bundles other than the recent deal with Chromecasts.
Microsoft may be gauging the potential of bundling Xbox Game Pass with other popular services to expand its subscribers, and frankly it’s a smart move. Just a few months after the Hulu-Spotify bundle was revealed, Hulu’s subscriber count had already increased by three million. ESPN+ in particular increased its subscriber count to over seven million users, largely in part to the Disney+ and Hulu bundle. Much like cable, bundling core streaming services together has proven benefits, so Microsoft could be eyeing a similar strategy for Xbox Game Pass.
Only problem is, without game streaming being inherently included in that package (for now), that bundle is still a very niche option. It could remain that way too, depending on how Google and Amazon react to the proposition of an Xbox Game Pass streaming app on their hardware. Increasing Game Pass subscribers becomes vastly more difficult if new potential subscribers can’t use their existing streaming hardware to play Xbox games. That being said, assuming those obstacles can be cleared, Xbox Game Pass could expand even further than before.
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