i3 - July/August 2019 - 21

Google is targeting billions of gamers globally
with its new cloud-based streaming service, Stadia,
launching later this year. "The long-term vision is to
take Stadia anywhere you might have YouTube,"
Buser explains.
That YouTube connection goes even further, as
Google demonstrated at the 2019 Game Developers
Conference (GDC). It showed gamers watching a
video game trailer or Let's Play video on YouTube
jump into gameplay immediately by clicking the
"Play Now" button. Buser says this opens up opportunities for streamers and YouTube gaming influencers, who can now invite fans into their games
with the click of a button.
Considering that consumers watched over 50 billion hours of video game content on YouTube in 2018,
and over 200 million fans watch YouTube gaming
videos daily, that's a powerful marketing tool. Because Stadia is cloudbased (using Google's global
network of data centers), gamers
can seamlessly transition from gaming on their living room TV to their
laptop to their mobile device -
using their same Google account.
Doom Eternal, an intense 4K firstperson horror shooter from id
Software, was demonstrated at
GDC across multiple platforms.
Stadia will stream games in 4K
running at 60 frames per second.
Buser says all that's needed is an
internet connection of 30 megabits
per second. Stadia will automatically optimize the gameplay experience to the highest quality based on
your bandwidth, Buser adds.
Researchandmarkets.com says more than 189.3
million smart TVs are in the global market. Each of
those TVs now becomes a high-end gaming system,
thanks to Stadia's powerful hardware stack, which
combines server class GPU, CPU, memory and storage. Buser adds that Google's data center infrastructure means Stadia technology will never become
obsolete, which is an issue with current game consoles, PCs and mobile devices.
While there will be a free version of Stadia
offered, users can pay $9.99 a month to get free
games, exclusive discounts and the ability to stream
up to a 4K resolution.
Further, the Stadia controller connects the

gameplay experience across any device, and Google
is rolling it out with its service.
"The controller also includes a button for instant capture, saving and sharing gameplay in up to 4K resolution," Buser says. "And it comes equipped with a Google
Assistant button and built-in microphone."
Stadia's success will revolve around pricing and
exclusive games, according to Joost van Dreunen,
managing director of Super Data Research, a
Nielsen company. "The hopeful utopian perspective
here is that as cloud gaming delivers on its promise
of facilitating play of any high-quality game on any
device, the market will grow," says van Dreunen.
"We already see the positive benefits this had for
music and video. And Stadia's initial leadership team
suggests that they are serious with industry luminaries
like Phil Harrison, who held key positions at both Sony
(where he oversaw 13 studios, including Sony's most successful) and
Microsoft, and Jade Raymond, who's
held executive positions at Ubisoft
and EA. It suggests that Google may
go about cloud gaming differently
than it has with other forms of
entertainment."
Buser says a team of global developers are creating exclusive titles for
Stadia, including games designed specifically to take advantage of YouTube
integration. "Because these games are
running in Google gaming data centers, which are all connected, we can
support large-scale multiplayer games
where thousands, if not millions, of
people are playing in a single connected world, and you can jump into
this world through YouTube from any
entry point," Buser explains.
The evolution of gaming into the digital space
continues with Google's commitment to gaming.
Piper Jaffray analysts Michael J. Olson and Yung
Kim forecast that by 2020 game software sales will
be completely digital as streaming and subscription
models become more popular.
"Google's announcement marks a key milestone in
the game industry's history," says van Dreunen. "It is
in part because video games have become a mainstream form of entertainment that a non-endemic
participant like Google has an opportunity to enter,"
he adds. "It also gives us part of a vision of the future
in what we traditionally know about console gaming

"The Stadia
controller
connects the
gameplay
experience
across any
device, and
Google is
rolling it out
with its
service."

C TA . t e c h / i 3

JULY/AUGUST 2019

http://www.Researchandmarkets.com https://cta.tech/News/i3.aspx

i3 - July/August 2019

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