Cheaper Game Pass on the Table
A month into the job, new Xbox chief Asha Sharma is already pushing to make Game Pass cheaper, and she’s even floated a Netflix bundle, according to The Information. The report says Sharma has been looking for practical ways to cut the monthly hit for subscribers after a stretch of rising costs and mixed goodwill around the service.
Microsoft raised the price of Game Pass Ultimate to $30 last fall, a move that frustrated many long-time users. With budgets stretched and competition growing, the division is now exploring options to widen access without sacrificing revenue, from cross-service bundles to new plan structures that lower the barrier to entry.
Netflix Talks and an Ad-Supported Tier
The Information’s profile describes a “vote of confidence” from Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters, who has “kicked around ideas” with Sharma about how to evolve Game Pass, including the possibility of bundling it with Netflix. Affordability was the throughline in those talks, the outlet reports, signaling a focus on price rather than a dramatic overhaul of the product itself.
One lever on the table is an ad-supported tier, something Microsoft has reportedly explored for some time. Netflix made a similar pivot in 2022 after years of resisting advertising, and it’s since used that cheaper entry point to grow sign-ups while monetizing viewers in new ways. A Game Pass plan with ads could mirror that trade-off: lower cost in exchange for sponsorships, placements, or partner promotions around downloads and catalog discovery.
What would a Netflix bundle look like in practice? The most straightforward version would be a discounted joint subscription with shared billing, but there’s room for more creative tie-ins. A crossover ad tier that spans both services, limited-time content perks, or regional rollouts could all be part of early discussions. These are exploratory talks, though—no deal has been announced, and the specifics may shift as both sides weigh cost, licensing, and churn risk.
Marketing Reset Under Sharma
Sharma is also moving quickly on messaging. The report says she decided to discontinue the “This Is An Xbox” campaign and remove mentions of it from public-facing channels after taking over. That’s a clear reset, aimed at sharpening what Xbox is selling and how it speaks to players. When you’re trying to win back attention, muddled slogans don’t help.
Her early comments about a return to the console’s “roots” built expectations for a bolder direction. So far, the headline changes center on affordability and a marketing cleanup. Those are meaningful, but they won’t quiet debates about where Xbox hardware, first-party scheduling, and PC strategy are headed in the next cycle.
Hardware Rumblings and Strategy Signals
Project Helix—a gaming PC that plays Xbox games—continues to surface in reporting around Microsoft’s plans. It sounds like an evolution of what the company already does on Windows rather than a radical new pitch. Paired with ongoing multi-platform releases and cloud integrations, it suggests Xbox wants to meet players wherever they are, even if that means fewer sharp edges between console, PC, and streaming.
These moves could help stabilize momentum after a rocky stretch. Price relief through bundles or ads would make Game Pass feel approachable again, especially after last year’s hike to $30 for Ultimate. But fans aren’t just asking for cheaper access; they want clarity on hardware roadmaps and a steadier cadence of marquee first-party games. Without that, “more affordable” may read as incremental rather than inspiring.
Sharma’s first month points to a pragmatic play: fix the pitch, widen the funnel, and make the subscription easier to swallow. If a Netflix partnership materializes and an ad tier lands with the right balance, Xbox could regain ground quickly. The bigger test is still ahead—whether the new boss can pair those business wins with a crisp vision for where Xbox goes next, and why players should rally around it.
