EU's new regulation is set to help the company's mobile app store aspirations.
Microsoft's mobile gaming store may launch as soon as 2024, Xbox head Phil Spencer shared in a new interview.
The tech giant's intention to open its Xbox mobile store on Android and iOS to compete with Google Play and the App Store was first revealed in October 2022 when the company detailed these plans in a filing to the UK's competition regulator CMA.
Now, speaking to the Financial Times, Spencer revealed that the opening of the store, contingent on regulatory approval of the deal with Activision Blizzard, could be as soon as 2024. This launch will become possible due to the EU's Digital Markets Act, which will require that Apple and Google open their platforms to third-party stores starting in March 2024.
"We want to be in a position to offer Xbox and content from both us and our third-party partners across any screen where somebody would want to play," Spencer said. "Today, we can’t do that on mobile devices but we want to build towards a world that we think will be coming where those devices are opened up.”
Micrsoft has previously stated that the deal is primarily centered around expanding into the mobile space, rather than being focused on Call of Duty citing the continuous popularity of games such as Call of Duty: Mobile and Candy Crush Saga. The company states that it has yet to make significant strides in this area claiming that the acquisition is its strategic move to expand its mobile gaming offerings.
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