Will the Free-to-Play Model Replace Online Gaming Monthly Subscription?

By Karla Robinson
August 6, 2012

Free-to-play gaming provides consumers with more choice and possibly even more content as developers update to attract more people or bring previous users back.
“The concept of paying a regular, flat fee for access to game time has had a good run since apparently getting its start in the mid-’80s, and the business model will no doubt continue to limp along for a while in some corners of the industry,” writes Ars Technica. “But it seems obvious now that offering online games for free, and monetizing players once they’re hooked, has fully replaced this outdated business model.”
Already, game makers are seeing a switch in consumer behavior. “‘Lord of the Rings Online’ saw its monthly revenue double after it stopped requiring subscriptions in 2010. ‘DC Universe Online’ saw a seven-fold revenue increase when it did the same late last year. Even the venerable ‘Team Fortress 2’ started bringing in 12 times as much money when it switched to a primarily hat-based business model,” notes the article.
While this trend hasn’t held out for all games — like “World of Warcraft,” which continues to benefit from monthly subscriptions — Ars Technica criticizes the model’s non-negotiable rates compared with the more a la carte approach of level-limited free-to-play options that offer microtransactions.
“It’s that kind of inflexibility that has proven to be the online gaming subscription model’s ultimate downfall,” suggests the article.

No Comments Yet