Microsoft reportedly has a plan to get Xbox Game Pass Ultimate’s game streaming feature on Apple’s iPhone and iPad.
During a recent all-hands meeting, Phil Spencer, the head of all things Xbox at Microsoft, said “we absolutely will end up on iOS,” according to Business Insider.
Despite recent changes to its App Store policies, Apple still doesn’t allow game streaming apps like Xbox cloud gaming in its App Store because it requires developers to submit an app for each individual game on their service.
In theory, Apple would then review every single game on the platform. This remains a strange move on the tech giant’s part, given that it doesn’t require streaming video platforms like Netflix or Crave to have every television show and movie on the service reviewed.
During the meeting, Spencer said Microsoft is exploring the possibility of getting Xbox Game Pass Ultimate’s game streaming feature on the iPhone and iPad through a browser. It’s unclear what browser Spencer is referring to, but it’s likely Edge.
This would allow the tech giant to circumvent Apple’s restrictive App Store rules without violating any of the Cupertino, California-based company’s policies. Amazon’s recently announced Luna game streaming service is taking a similar route by launching on iPhone by running solely through a browser. Luna is not releasing in Canada.
In an interview with Engadget, a Luna engineer revealed that Amazon worked with Apple to create this functionality, which is a good sign for Microsoft’s efforts to bring Xbox game streaming to iPhone and iPad through a browser.
Further, The Verge reports that during the same meeting, Spencer revealed Xbox cloud gaming will come to Windows 10 PCs next year.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which includes first-party Microsoft games, third-party titles, EA Access and cloud gaming, costs $16.99 per month. The Xbox Series X and Series S are set to launch on November 10th.
Apple is expected to reveal its iPhone 12 series at its upcoming October 13th hardware event.
Source: Business Insider, The Verge
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