According to a rumour, Microsoft is working on a programme that will allow firms to broadcast adverts within free-to-play Xbox games. According to those familiar with the matter, the adverts would not interfere with gameplay and might show on a billboard in a racing game, for example.
It’s unclear how else Microsoft intends to introduce adverts, such as having them appear as avatar skins or as films inside gaming lobbies. Microsoft is apparently afraid that the advertising may “irritate” players and plans to develop a “secret marketplace” to allow only select firms to participate in the scheme.
According to sources, Microsoft will not take a part of ad revenue and will instead allow the game developer and advertising provider to split the funds. It’s possible that Microsoft simply wants to exploit this as a method to entice more free-to-play game developers to the platform, as this would offer up a new revenue stream aside from microtransactions.
According to reliable sources, Microsoft will not use data gathered from Bing and other services to target advertisements on Xbox. The magazine also does not know whether Microsoft has yet approached advertisers about the plan, but its sources predict advertising will begin appearing on Xbox as early as the third quarter of this year.
