Under Financial Struggles, Nvidia Plans to Limit GeForce Now Users to 10 Hours of Gaming Per Week
Nvidia has soared to become the most valuable company globally within the past two years, largely due to its high-demand GPUs for AI processing. However, we shouldn't overlook its gaming roots. In line with this, Nvidia is now making some adjustments to its GeForce Now cloud gaming service. The Priority membership title is being rebranded as Performance, and additional features include 1440p streaming and support for ultra-wide screen resolutions. The most delightful change is that players will now be able to retain graphic settings throughout different sessions.
GeForce Now serves as Nvidia's answer to cloud gaming, going head-to-head with offerings such as Xbox Game Pass and possibly Steam Remote Play. These services grant access to triple AAA games to more players, as they can be enjoyed regardless of whether the user has top-tier hardware. GeForce Now requires a regular subscription fee, with users also expected to provide their own games.
Given the ongoing trend of streaming services increasing their prices, Nvidia is keeping GeForce Now's pricing the same, with one condition - users are now limited to 100 hours of gameplay per month, which equates to around 3 hours a day. Unused playtime can carry over to the following month, up to a maximum of 15 hours. Performance users can purchase an extra 15 hours for $2.99, while Ultimate users must shell out $5.99 (Ultimate provides higher-resolution gaming).
Nvidia estimates that only 6% of users ever reach the 100-hour limit. However, the pricing remains steady, making GeForce Now seem less attractive over time. The skepticism surrounding cloud gaming due to latency is already present. Adding a limitation on playtime makes cloud gaming even harder to sell, effectively acting as a hidden price hike.
Despite garnering nearly $17 billion in profit during its last quarter, thanks to AI chipsets, Nvidia justifies the GeForce Now cap to avoid raising membership fees in the near future. While it may appear disingenuous, corporations like Nvidia are naturally driven by profit motives.
This pattern of pricing escalation and content removal is common across the entire spectrum of streaming entertainment. Services begin at budget-friendly prices, which gradually climb up, and content is arbitrarily removed due to licensing reasons. Subscription fees can leave individuals shocked when they examine their bank statements, finding that their monthly expenses on such services have skyrocketed. Entertainers such as Apple and Warner Bros, the proprietor of Max, have begun attempting to bundle services together to reduce cancellations as consumers start feeling drained by it all.
The tech industry's focus on AI processing and cloud services has led Nvidia to leverage its GeForce Now platform, highlighting its potential for the future of gaming. As technology advances, cloud gaming services like GeForce Now are poised to expand their user base, offering triple AAA games to players without top-tier hardware.
