Report: Ad-Supported Version of Xbox Cloud Gaming is Being Tested - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 03 October 2025 / 5,387 Views
Microsoft might be getting ready to launch an ad-supported version of at least Xbox Cloud Gaming in the future, according to a report from The Verge.
Sources have told the site that Microsoft has started testing ad-supported games streaming internally. This lets employees play select titles for free without a Game Pass subscription.
The internal testing includes around two minutes of preroll adds before a game is available to stream for free via Xbox Cloud Gaming.
The test is limited to one hour sessions, with up to five hours free a month. It is possible the limit could change if the ad-supported version of Xbox Cloud Gaming becomes available for everyone.
Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad has also speculated a cloud only tier, ad-supported tier, or mobile offerings could become available in the future.
"The big question going forward is if Game Pass can be a sustainable product off console and how best they can reach this audience," he said. "At the very least that's going to require a lower entry cost (Essential) and experimentation with cloud only, ad supported, or mobile first offerings."
Microsoft this week announced a range of changes to its Xbox Game Pass subscription service that include the Ultimate tier seeing a price increase from $20 per month to $30 per month, a 50 percent increase.
Game Pass Essential and Game Pass Premium do offer more benefits than before at the same price as they now include PC games and Xbox Cloud Gaming. PC Game Pass, which includes day one games, also saw a price increase from $12 per month to $16.50 per month.
The higher price in the Ultimate tier does include some new content like Ubisoft+ Classics and Fortnite Crew, however, fans are not happy as many have stated they won't be taking advantage of the new content.
Several retailers - GameStop, Amazon, Target, Best Buy - are still selling Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at the lower price of $20 for per month or $60 for three months. It is possible to stack up to three years of a Game Pass subscription.
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can follow the author on Bluesky.
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1 hour sessions? Is it worth it for 2 minutes of ads at a probable 720p stream?
This is just a test only available to Microsoft employees, so it could change if it becomes available for everyone. Of course it could get worse or possibly better. I'd rather just have ad supported versions of the current Game Pass tiers, but for less money. Say like half the price.
It is the same with GeForce now, the free version is 1 hour session. GeForce Now has a queue that usually ends up being a bit more than 2 minutes :) So 2 minutes adds without a queue would be better I think (oh and I just checked, the free version of GeForce now also has ads) so yeah.
I doubt they can make any profit, off of just 2mins of ads... every hour of gaming. If they plan to offer this for mass market, it would likely need to be longer or more often, because the ads offset the cost of running the servers/electricity/internet traffic, and still give them a little profit.
GeForce Now is already doing that... So I guess there is a way to make this work.
Be real.... can a few minuets of ads really pay for the hardware costs and internet traffic costs ect? You would need to eat alot of time, viewing ads then, otherwise I don't see how MS/Xbox could make a profit giving it away for "free". Cloud Streaming is not cheap (for the people offering it).
Companies pre pay to put ads on services, so for a buisness, yes its worth it but as a customer, it sucks.
Brands also pay for Ad Spaces.
Nah. I'll stick to PC and PlayStation
It an american corps, they love ads and there loyal "fans" loves wasting time watching ads (as shown in comments), surprise this haven't been done decades ago!! Now here's hoping apple is next
Its just keep getting better and better what a glorious golden age of glorious digital gaming
The once subjective view of things being better in the olden days is getting more and more objective by the day.
If this is included in the base tier, i don't have have an issue with it. If its included into the Premium and Ultimate and have to pay additional, no Thanks.
I think the idea is it would be a new, free tier.
The enshittification continues.
