LogInMicrosoft's Xbox Mobile Game Store is scheduled to launch in July. The browser-based store will initially feature Microsoft's own games, offering discounts on in-game items for popular titles like Candy Crush Saga.
The announcement was made by Xbox President Sarah Bond at the Bloomberg Technology Summit. Microsoft plans to open the store to other publishers at a later date.
Image Credit: Xbox
One key point regarding Xbox's game store highlighted by Bond is that it will launch on the web, making it "accessible across all devices, all countries, no matter what, independent of the policies of closed ecosystem stores."
Microsoft intends to create a store that "goes truly across devices — where who you are, your library, your identity, your rewards travel with you versus being locked to a single ecosystem," Bond explained. This is very different from the App Store or Google Play, where users must open the app to access other applications.
Microsoft's cross-platform hit game, Minecraft, might be among the early additions to the web store, Bond hinted.
Image Credit: King, Candy Crush Saga
An Xbox spokesperson shared with Bloomberg via email that "this web-based store is the first step in our journey to building a trusted app store with its roots in gaming."
The news follows that Apple will allow iPhone users in the EU to download third-party app stores starting in March this year with the release of iOS 17.4. However, these app stores will require Apple's approval to ensure customer safety.
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