Microsoft will cancel inactive Xbox Game Pass subscriptions and be more transparent about auto-renewal and price increases to the service.
Due to findings from an investigation from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, Microsoft has begun canceling certain Xbox Game Pass subscriptions. Tech companies are no strangers to regulations from the government, especially larger ones like Microsoft, which has to deal with the turbulence of international trade. The company’s Xbox Game Pass subscription is the latest service to have renewed regulations, with changes coming to how the company handles its renewal and cancelation policies.
Since its introduction, Xbox Game Pass has been regarded as one of the best values in the gaming industry. Especially with the volume and quality of Game Pass reveals during Summer Game Fest, subscribers of the service have a lot to be excited about. Starfield, Redfall, and Hollow Knight: Silksong are just a few of the heavy hitters coming to the service over the course of the next year. However, in addition to new games, some other changes will be coming to Game Pass soon.
Following the UK Competition and Markets Authority‘s investigation, Microsoft is changing Game Pass to make it easier for subscribers to cancel their subscription or turn off auto-renew for the service. In addition, dormant accounts will begin having their subscriptions automatically ended, without any action needed on the user’s end. It seems these changes are coming to both Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Live Gold, making it easier for all Xbox players to manage their subscriptions.
Game Pass Is Canceling Old Subscriptions & Bringing Transparency
Along with a possible family plan for Xbox Game Pass, more transparency will be coming soon. These changes will be rolling out worldwide, even though the investigation was UK-based. Inactive memberships being canceled is a key part of this new plan, ensuring that Microsoft’s service isn’t simply taking advantage of forgetful players who subscribed at some point, then accidentally left the subscription active.
Additionally, any upcoming price increases will be given advanced notice, and subscribers will be told how to turn off auto-renewal if they no longer want to subscribe to the service after the increase. Microsoft will also contact current subscribers on 12-month contracts to offer a refund to customers, relative to the time they have been subscribed to the service. For example, if customers bought a yearly subscription for $99, and got this refund after being subscribed for 6 months, the customer would get roughly $50. These refund offers are in addition to Microsoft cracking down on select Game Pass subscriptions that were sold by a fraudulent reseller.
Overall, there should be some new changes coming soon to Xbox Game Pass that are incredibly user-friendly. However, there are still more changes that Microsoft could make to ensure Game Pass isn’t predatory. One big change that could still be made is allowing users to cancel auto-renewal straight from their Xbox consoles, rather than requiring the change to be done on a web browser. Despite there still being some work to do, though, these new changes will make Xbox Game Pass an even better deal for players.
Source: United Kingdom Competition and Markets Authority
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