Challenging Apple and Google! Microsoft to launch a mobile game online store in July

According to the Zhitong Finance and Economics APP, Microsoft (MSFT.US) will launch a mobile game online store in July this year, competing with Apple (AAPL.US) and Google (GOOGL.US) app stores.

Sarah Bond, president of Microsoft's Xbox, said on Thursday that the online store will feature Microsoft's own games and offer discounts on in-game items related to games like "Candy Crush Saga." Subsequently, Microsoft will open the store to other publishers.

Bond stated that the store is web-based, not an application, so it "can be accessed on all devices, independent of the policies of closed ecosystem stores."

Microsoft sees an opportunity to create a "truly cross-device store," according to Bond. The company aims to promote games on gaming consoles, computers, and mobile devices. Bond mentioned that Microsoft's popular cross-platform game "Minecraft" may be an early product on this online store.

A spokesperson for Xbox stated in an email: "This web-based store is the first step in building a trusted app store, with a foundation in gaming."

Apple and Google dominate the app stores where game developers release games, charging around 30% in sales fees. By the end of 2023, Microsoft's gaming head Phil Spencer revealed that the company is in talks with partners to launch its own Xbox app store.

The EU's Digital Markets Act, which came into effect this year, allows tech companies to operate their own direct-to-consumer online stores and avoid fees from Apple and Google.

As Microsoft enters the $90 billion mobile gaming market, it lags behind its competitors in the gaming industry. However, following the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is further expanding into the mobile gaming market. Activision Blizzard owns "Candy Crush Saga" and "Call of Duty." Since its release in 2012, "Candy Crush Saga" has been downloaded 5 billion times, generating $20 billion in revenue