Microsoft’s Game Pass Ultimate price hike will not immediately affect subscribers in certain territories, but it’s still bad news for UK gamers.
The recently announced 50% price increase for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate has led to a wave of subscribers scrambling for cheap codes to delay the inevitable, but there’s a way out for those living in certain countries.
While existing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers in the UK and US have until November 4 before the new £22.99/$29.99 per month price comes into effect, Microsoft has revealed subscribers in certain countries can dodge it entirely – for now, at least.
This new twist first emerged after some players received an email from Microsoft stating the price increase will ‘not affect your current subscription for the market in which you reside’ as long as you stay subscribed on an auto-recurring plan. ‘Should you choose to cancel your plan and repurchase, you will be charged at the new current rate,’ the email reads.
This was later confirmed by Microsoft in a statement to The Verge. ‘Our recent Game Pass update remains unchanged,’ Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications, said. ‘Current subscribers in certain countries will continue renewing at their existing price for now, in line with local requirements. We’ll provide advance notice before price adjustments take effect in these countries.’
While there isn’t a definitive list of which countries fall under these terms, subscribers in Poland, Ireland, Italy, Germany, India, and South Korea, have all reported that they’ve been sent the email. Sadly, the UK isn’t so lucky.
This means subscribers in these countries will still be charged €17.99 per month, instead of the new €26.99 price, as long as they stay subscribed. However, the email notes that players in these territories will be notified ‘at least 60 days in advance’ of any changes to their account, so there’s a chance it could go up after the next two months.
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As for why it applies to these countries specifically, there have been cases in Germany and Poland where unilateral price increases for subscription services have been found unlawful under their regulations.
In Poland, for example, companies need ‘explicit and informed consent of the user’ to change the price of a service mid-subscription, according to Polish regulator UOKiK.
These rules have impacted streaming companies like Amazon and Netflix. One person in Germany even won a lawsuit earlier this year over Netflix price hikes, which led to them being refunded €200.
To try and justify the price increase for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Microsoft has thrown in some new incentives, namely the addition of Ubisoft+ Classics, Fortnite Crew, and improved streaming on Xbox Cloud Gaming. The only other tier affected is PC Game Pass, which has seen a smaller increase from £9.99 to £13.49 per month.
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