Meta Ties Executive Pay to Aggressive Stock Price Targets in Major Retention Push 
SK Hynix Eyes Up to $14 Billion U.S. IPO to Fund AI Chip Expansion 
Brown-Forman and Pernod Ricard in Merger Talks to Create World's Largest Spirits Giant 
Golden Dome Missile Defense: Anduril and Palantir Join Forces on Trump's $185B Space Shield 
Makemation: a Nollywood movie that shows AI in action in Africa 
Valero Port Arthur Refinery Explosion Prompts $1M Lawsuit Over Worker Safety Negligence 
Brazil Meat Exports Weather Iran War Disruptions With Rerouted Shipments 
Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling 
9 Tips for Avoiding Tax Season Cyber Scams 
OpenAI Pulls the Plug on Sora, Ending $1 Billion Disney Partnership 
Reflection AI Eyes $25 Billion Valuation in Massive $2.5 Billion Funding Round 
Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon's Blacklisting of AI Company Anthropic 
Nomura Upgrades PDD Holdings to Buy, Calls Stock Too Cheap to Ignore 
Chinese Universities with PLA Ties Found Purchasing Restricted U.S. AI Chips Through Super Micro Servers 
SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn 
Judge Dismisses Sam Altman Sexual Abuse Lawsuit, But Sister Can Refile 
Elliott Investment Management Takes Multibillion-Dollar Stake in Synopsys 
Netflix has more plans to prove how serious it is with its gaming venture, including potentially launching a cloud streaming service in the future. The media streaming giant also announced it is establishing another in-house development studio, this time, based in Southern California.
In an appearance at the TechCrunch Disrupt this week, Netflix VP of Gaming Mike Verdu revealed the company is looking into introducing a Game Pass-like service. Microsoft's subscription-based product has been commonly referred to as the "Netflix of gaming" due to its similar business model that allows members to gain unlimited access to games in the Game Pass library.
Noting that its gaming business is still in its early stages, Verdu noted that Netlfix's cloud-based gaming service would not be presented as a complete alternative to console and PC gaming. “It’s a value add. We’re not asking you to subscribe as a console replacement,” Verdu said. “It’s a completely different business model. The hope is over time that it just becomes this very natural way to play games wherever you are.”
While streaming services have been on the rise in recent years, not every company dipping its toes into this business model has seen great success. Google announced the Stadia shutdown last month and the service's eventual closure in January next year. The lessons from Stadia's fate are not lost on Verdu, but the gaming VP noted that while there were issues with its business model, he considers Stadia a "technical success."
It appears that Netflix's plans for cloud gaming have yet to be finalized. But the company is already showing its seriousness in its gaming business by acquiring developers and establishing first-party development studios. After announcing its first in-house developer based in Helsinki, Finland, Verdu confirmed at the same event that it is also opening a new gaming studio in California.
Verdu did not mention a more specific location for its in-house developer, aside from saying it will be situated in Southern California. But the Netflix exec announced it would be led by former "Overwatch" executive producer Chacko Sonny.
The games that its internal studios will develop are still unknown, but Netflix confirmed it has 14 first-party titles in the pipeline. Verdu also made an appearance during Ubisoft's event last month, where he announced multiple mobile games in development from the publisher's franchises, including "Assassin's Creed."
Photo by Sayan Ghosh on Unsplash
