Xbox CSO Matthew Ball Floats Cheaper Ad-Supported Subscription Tiers

Microsoft’s Xbox gaming division is altering its strategy under the leadership of new CEO Asha Sharma, in the hopes of winning back gamers. This includes exploring more options to make the Xbox ecosystem more accessible to the masses. To that end, chief strategist, Mathew Ball, says that ads can play a role in accomplishing this goal in an interview with The Game Business.

Ball rightfully points out that streaming services have used ad-supported tiers to not only retain but also grow their subscriber counts. "I think the best evidence comes from the [TV] streaming space. In excess of 100% of net adds in the United States for years and years have been on the ad-supported tier.", he said.

It’s not just streaming services Xbox can draw inspiration from, either, as other hardware makers have been using ads for several years to subsidize devices. For example, Amazon offers several of its Kindle e-readers at discounted prices to customers who are willing to put up with more ads.


Although he stressed that it’s not about “cramming ads in everything,” and that he isn’t referring to in-game ads in the way many are worrying. Instead, he’s hoping that leveraging ads might allow the company to “offer more affordable alternatives alongside today's ad-free experiences” in the same way Netflix and Disney+ do to offer the same content at half the price.

It’s not too surprising to see Xbox executives discuss ad-supported subscription tiers and hardware. The current memory and chip shortage is making it very difficult to provide products at attractive price points. Ads could serve as a way to keep the vision of Project Helix, it’s next generation console, intact while ensuring that its price tag is something that gamers in the console space are more comfortable with.