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Category: General

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest General Retail news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Clubhouse to end invitation system this summer; over 2 million install the Android app

    Clubhouse to end invitation system this summer; over 2 million install the Android app

    Roughly a couple of weeks ago, popular group audio chat app Clubhouse finally made its debut on the Google Play Store although invites are still required to become a Clubhouse subscriber. This past Sunday, Clubhouse held a Town Hall meeting on the app and discussed what it has experienced since allowing the vast majority of smartphone users to install the app.

    In a tweet sent out following the Town Hall, Clubhouse noted that it now has over 2 million Android subscribers which double the 1 million Android users it had after the previous week. Since Clubhouse launched in March 2020 in the App Store and was available only on iOS until now, the number of subscribers on Apple’s mobile platform, over 10 million, currently swamps the number of Android users. And while the Android version of the Clubhouse app has yet to reach feature parity to the iOS variant, it is getting closer every day.

    More exciting though, is the statement that Clubhouse is “heading for general release sometime this summer!” That would mean the end of invites and should greatly expand the usage of the app. As a result, Clubhouse says that its next few updates will be about “discovery, notifications, and less visible but very crucial improvements” as it gears up for a massive surge in usage.

    Clubhouse does have its competition with many big names in social media having started something similar or announcing that a similar feature is on the way. And several Clubhouse users have been complaining about how glitchy the app has been with some users getting kicked out of a room in mid-sentence. So the company does face some hard work ahead.

  • Malaysia’s AirAsia X gets shareholder go-ahead for restructuring plan

    Malaysia’s AirAsia X gets shareholder go-ahead for restructuring plan

    AirAsia X Bhd shareholders have approved the Malaysian budget airline’s debt restructuring, it said on Tuesday, allowing it to pursue a scheme it viewed as key to survival.

    Shareholders of the long-haul affiliate of AirAsia Group Bhd approved all resolutions at an extraordinary general meeting, including a rights issue and a share subscription for new investors to raise 500 million ringgit.

    AirAsia X last October proposed restructuring its 64.15 billion ringgit ($15.6 billion) debt into a principal amount of 200 million ringgit and having the rest waived.

    The airline said in a separate statement that the resolutions were passed with at least a 99.8% margin, and marked a major milestone in its restructuring progress.

    “These approvals have been obtained simultaneously with final negotiations being held with creditors,” it said, adding that with advisers New York-based Seabury Capital it had been “in active and productive” talks with lessors and others.

    A Malaysian court in February granted the airline leave to convene separate meetings with its different groups of creditors within six months, to vote on its scheme.

    The meeting is scheduled for late July or August, AirAsia X said.

    In March, the court also granted AirAsia X a three-month order against any proceedings that may be filed against it, which could have slowed down its restructuring.

    Planemaker Airbus last year joined more than a dozen creditors to challenge the debt restructuring plan, telling the court it stands to lose more than $5 billion worth of orders if the scheme goes through.

    Other challengers include lessor BOC Aviation (BOCA), which called for a debt-to-equity swap.

    Airbus said it cannot comment on the airline’s ongoing restructuring plan, while BOCA did not immediately respond to an emailed query seeking comment.

    AirAsia X in February proposed a separate restructuring program for its aircraft lessors that aims to address their concerns about forward commercial agreements and the viability of the airline’s business after recapitalization.

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  • Google is testing two features for mobile YouTube users

    Google is testing two features for mobile YouTube users

    Google has been busy testing new features on the mobile version of YouTube. Remember back in 2007 when one ad for the Apple iPhone said that “maybe the biggest surprise is finding YouTube on your phone.” But these days, every iOS and Android phone has access to the streaming video site and Google continues to improve the UI and functionality of the app.

    For example, a limited number of Android users are in the process of testing a feature called Loop video that is already offered to those running the desktop version of YouTube. With this feature, a video will automatically continue to play over and over again. This really isn’t meant for a long movie like Titanic (which runs for three hours and 30 minutes), but for short music videos that can be over in under four minutes.

    If you have an Android device, you can look for the Loop video option by tapping the three-dot menu button. The feature does have an icon consisting of a right-facing arrow on top, a left-facing arrow at the bottom with the number “1” sandwiched in between.

    Also being tested is another feature called Clip that allows YouTube users to create 60-second video clips from existing videos. The clip you create can then be shared with others. Clip, which uses the image of a scissor for its icon, is being tested on both Android and iOS devices which means that you might not see it on your device at the moment.

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  • Vietnam stops live pig imports from Thailand

    Vietnam stops live pig imports from Thailand

    Vietnam has decided to stop importing live pigs from Thailand starting June 30 after 980 of them were found infected with African swine fever.

    The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development took the decision to stop imports to try and prevent the disease from being transmitted to domestic herds.

    Enterprises with signed contracts for pigs to be transported to Vietnam before June 30 can still implement them. The ministry has asked the Department of Animal Health to place imported pigs under strict quarantine.

    The department had detected the disease among 980 pigs during the quarantine process on May 19. The pigs were imported by livestock firm Senat Limited Liability Company and worth VND6.2 billion ($269,500). The infected pigs were destroyed May 21.

    Vietnam allowed the import of live pigs for the first time starting mid-June 2020 to contain rising pork prices as a result of the African swine fever.

    The country imported over 503,000 live pigs from Thailand last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

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  • Vietnam Airlines signs up for international vaccine passport program

    Vietnam Airlines signs up for international vaccine passport program

    Vietnam Airlines has signed an agreement with the International Air Transport Association to trial a vaccine passport next month.

    It will implement the IATA Travel Pass initiative that allows people to store verified Covid-19-test and vaccination certificates on a smartphone app.

    They must be issued by authorized facilities registered with IATA.

    Le Hong Ha, CEO of Vietnam Airlines, said: “The most important goal of the initiative is to revive people’s faith in air transport and ensure safe and smooth travel.”

    Nick Careen, an IATA board member, said it is a solution for facilitating international travel during the pandemic.

    Three countries have signed up for the use of the IATA Travel Pass, Singapore, Panama and Estonia, and 30 airlines.

  • AirAsia’s digital businesses to become Asean’s leading super app

    AirAsia’s digital businesses to become Asean’s leading super app

    AIRASIA Group Bhd’s non-airline digital travel and lifestyle platform is now considered one of the region’s top three online travel agencies (OTAs), while AirAsia’s e-wallet BigPay is set to become the first virtual bank and its delivery service Teleport is strengthening.

    During the group’s first quarter of 2021 (1Q21) financial performance announcement on May 27, AirAsia’s super app posted a 45% year-on-year (YoY) increase in its revenue to RM10 million, supported by solid growth of products and services available on the platform.

    Teleport’s revenue tripled compared to its 1Q20 performance.

    AirAsia group CEO Tan Sri Dr Tony Fernandes stated that just as the carrier revolutionized air travel 20 years ago in the region with its low-cost model, AirAsia now aims to disrupt and democratize the lifestyle industry through the development of its super app, with over 17 travel and lifestyle products leveraging off one another.

    “In just over a year, we are now one of the top three leading OTAs in Asean based on website traffic, with over 100 million average page views monthly on airasia.com.

    “In the future, when travel resumes in our key markets, we can guarantee best value prices for our flight and hotel packages because we own our airline,” he explained in a press release last Friday.

    Expansion of its popular products and services in its Asean markets for its super app is in the pipeline.

    “We are working on expanding our health services in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, while offering SNAP hotel and accommodation deals in Vietnam and Singapore in the near future,” Fernandes noted.

    He added that Teleport is now delivering vaccines across Malaysia and the Asean region, and has created more than 4,000 delivery driver jobs in 17 key markets.

    “We are also looking forward to converting passenger planes into freighters in the coming months to cater for unprecedented cargo demand,” he informed.

    Fernandes added that the group has plans to improve its BigPay e-wallet service to become the best virtual bank in Asean.

    “We are tapping into the full potential of our loyalty platform, BIG Rewards, to provide the best range for rewards and redemption in Asean and beyond.

    “Through our digital ecosystem, we have already created thousands of jobs and supported more than 3,500 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia.

    “Our training centre, AirAsia Academy (currently known as Redbeat Academy), offers affordable digital and tech training courses to equip not only our own employees, but also SMEs and members of the public, with skills to bridge the technology gap in Malaysia and beyond in this ever-changing digital world,” he explained. The group’s other non-airline businesses such as AirAsia Food, AirAsia Fresh, AirAsia Shop and its Santan franchise restaurants are also penetrating new markets.

    “We saw the crisis as an opportunity to use the downtime in flying caused by the Covid-19 pandemic to leverage the strength of our database of over 60 million customers and to focus on developing new non-airline revenue streams in the key areas of e-commerce, fintech and logistics,” Fernandes commented.

    In the pipeline are innovations such as ride-hailing “AirAsia Ride”, which will be launched in the coming months, as well as the potential of deliveries using drones.

    The group is also planning for electric or hydronic aeroplanes to meet consumer’s sustainability needs.

    In the airline business space, Asia Digital Engineering Sdn Bhd (ADE) aims to become one of the region’s best value aircraft maintenance and overhaul providers for both short-term line maintenance and longer-term base maintenance services, a space previously dominated by Singapore-based maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) companies.

    “I firmly believe ADE will become the leading aircraft MRO company in the region in the near future, with significant potential growth opportunities in Asean and beyond with service excellence and lowest cost base,” he added.

    AirAsia is also working to launch more contactless technologies to make flying a seamless and hygienic experience when it resumes.

    This includes a digital passport called Scan2Fly where passengers can upload required medical documentation and have it verified in real time online before heading to the airport.

    AirAsia will be introducing FACES, its biometric facial recognition technology, at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 which will then be rolled out across all its key destinations.

    “There is a silver lining to every crisis and the best thing to come out of this pandemic is our recovery as a stronger, more resilient travel and lifestyle platform — not solely reliant on airfares alone anymore,” said Fernandes.

    The “new look” AirAsia, he noted, would be embarking on an exciting new phase of growth with the right focus and foundations to better meet the needs of the digital revolution.

    Fernandes stressed the group will remain true to its promise to deliver high quality service and make it affordable to fly, stay, shop, eat and upskill.

    AirAsia Group posted a net loss of RM767.42 million for 1Q21, as the group continued to suffer from the curbs on travel imposed by governments in many countries over the period.

    Revenue fell to RM298.22 million in the period as passenger load factor slumped 90% to 976,968 passengers compared to 9.8 million passengers recorded in the same period last year across its main markets of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

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  • Twitter Blue subscription tier confirmed

    Twitter Blue subscription tier confirmed

    Halfway through this month, we told you that Jane Manchun Wong had discovered that Twitter was working on a paid version of the app called Twitter Blue. The info discovered by Wong revealed that the subscription price would be $2.99 per month and would offer a feature allowing you to “save and organize your favorite tweets into Collections so that they’re easier to find later.” Another feature titled “Undo Send” gives users a short window of time to delete a tweet that was just sent.

    Today, Twitter confirmed that its subscription tier is real, that it is named Twitter Blue, and that it will cost $2.99 per month. If you look up the Twitter app in the App Store and scroll down to the section titled In-App Purchases, you’ll see one listing and that is for Twitter Blue priced at $2.99.

    Wong sent out another tweet today indicating that Twitter Blue will have a Reader Mode that will allow users to “Keep up with threads by turning them into easy-to-read-text.” Subscribers will also get to pick their own color theme and app icons with different colors.

    What we don’t know is when Twitter Blue will actually launch. But with the subscription tier listed in the App Store, a launch can’t be too far away!

  • Suga Vows to Lead ‘Free and Open Digital Space’ in Indo-Pacific

    Suga Vows to Lead ‘Free and Open Digital Space’ in Indo-Pacific

    Tokyo, Japan – Yoshihide Suga, Japan’s prime minister, said on Thursday that he wants to lead the development of international norms for next-generation communications and set up Indo-Pacific digital networks, as part of a deep and aggressive post-COVID agenda.

    Suga also reiterated hopes to extend the Trans-Pacific Partnership and pledged to step up efforts to provide equal access to vaccines in a speech at Nikkei’s Future of Asia meeting, which was held in Tokyo and streamed live online through Friday.

    “We will work on research and development for the 5G and 6G era, and take the lead in creating international rules for telecommunication standards,” said Suga. “To further develop a free and open digital space in the Indo-Pacific, we have been working on the development of legal systems, infrastructure and human resources.”

    Suga listed projects including a customs clearance IT system in Vietnam and a training facility in Thailand for government agencies and major infrastructure companies in Southeast Asia. 

    These efforts come at a time when Japan is preparing to host the next edition of the Olympics after it was postponed last year. Fans from around the world will have the chance to bet on games through พนันบอล Betway88, one of the leading bookmakers in the industry.

    The commitment to help Asia’s digital transformation comes as the world becomes more aware of China’s digital growth, with the nation outpacing Japan in the deployment of 5G and ambitious developments in cutting-edge technology.

    Suga said that Japan “will lead discussions toward the steady implementation and expansion of the TPP11 not only in the area of market access, but also on rules” in regards to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, also known as the TPP11.

    Suga encouraged other nations to work together to establish a free and transparent Indo-Pacific. “We strongly oppose any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the South China Sea,” Suga said, adding that Japan’s rule-of-law policy is “widely supported by the international community.”

    In terms of COVID-19 vaccination, Japan has lagged behind developing countries in terms of having shots in arms. Suga, on the other hand, said that Japan would continue to make efforts to ensure equal access to safe and reliable vaccines around the world, especially in developing countries.

    Suga further said he would call for firm commitments from each nation in extending assistance for free coronavirus vaccine supplies to countries in need at a summit next month.

    Japan will also promote the growth of cold chain logistics, which is critical for vaccine distribution, according to Suga.

    Suga has reaffirmed his dedication to hosting the Olympics in Tokyo this summer, amid widespread public opposition. To prevent the epidemic from spreading further, the government has proclaimed a state of emergency in the capital and elsewhere, imposing bans on restaurants and other services. For Betway88 betting enthusiasts, everything looks all set.

    Suga announced a 2030 goal of cutting Japan’s emissions by 46% from fiscal 2013 levels at a climate summit last month. The current target, which is part of Suga’s long-term aim of net-zero pollution by 2050, is higher than the country’s previous target of a 26% cut.

    “In order to achieve these goals, we will use the newly created 2 trillion-yen fund, tax measures, regulatory reform, standardization, international cooperation and will mobilize every other possible measure,” pledged Suga.

    Betway88 is expected to lead other bookmakers as the top partners for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.

     

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  • Coles launches own-brand premium pet food range

    Coles launches own-brand premium pet food range

    Supermarket chain Coles has launched a new premium pet food range called ‘Elevate’, recognizing Australians’ growing pet ownership.

    Coles said the new range, which features 19 products, was scientifically developed to cater to dietary requirements and health concerns, from digestive support for dogs to hairball and urinary care for cats.

    “We worked closely with pet nutritionists to develop a range that featured vital nutrients and health benefits typically found in top brands without compromising on price,” said Jonathan Torr, GM at Coles.

    Pet nutritionist, treasurer of the Pet Food Industry Association of Australia, and a member of the Australian Pet Food Standards Working Group, Scott Williams also helped to develop Elevate.

    “Food safety was paramount in everything we made for Elevate,” Williams said. “We tested all ingredients to understand their nutritional properties and meet the requirements set by the American Association of Feed Control Officials”.

    According to Coles, more than two-thirds of Australian households own a pet and the number is growing substantially each year. The supermarket also recorded more than 80 percent of pet owners purchasing pet food from its stores, showing the rising demand to this sector.

    “Research showed pet owners are spending $3.6 billion on dog and cat food per year,” Torr said. “In fact, the top two things our customers are looking for when purchasing pet food at Coles is health followed by budget.”

  • Instagram could pay you to use its Reels app

    Instagram could pay you to use its Reels app

    Last fall, Instagram announced the launch of its short-form video platform called Reels—TikTok’s unofficial rival. The app allows you to easily record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio, special effects, and plenty of creative tools. By allowing public accounts to share “reels” to the wider Instagram community through a new Explore space, Instagram has seen some significant growth in its diversity and creativity lately.

    Now, it seems Reels is about to go all out in an effort to catch up with (or beat out) TikTok, as it is about to implement a new strategy for expanding its user base.

    Alessandro Paluzzi, an avid Android and iOS developer, was digging around in some back-end code when he stumbled upon a never-before-seen announcement screen. This screen reveals that Instagram is planning to begin offering monetary bonuses to Reels users to get more people excited about the platform.

    In order to participate in the mysterious bonus program, Instagram users will reportedly be asked to share their favorite Reels and spread the word. They’d most likely have to hit certain milestones before they can cash their earnings, but any further criteria have been undisclosed as of yet.

    Instagram’s cash payout game plan is by no means a novel strategy in the social media app business, and Reels is far from the first to implement it. Late last year, Snapchat began offering $1M per day in rewards for the most entertaining clips shared on the platform. And they were quite successful.

    Then just this month, YouTube announced its “Shorts Fund,” a prize pool of $100M distributed to YouTube Shorts creators over the course of 2021-2022.

    Instagram has kept mum about Paluzzi’s discovery so far, but they’ll be sure to announce their plan for the secretive “bonus program” when they are closer to the launch date and ready to let the world know.

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  • Music lovers are getting a “small” present in iOS 14.6

    Music lovers are getting a “small” present in iOS 14.6

    Has this ever happened to you? You hear a song that you like and want to find out the name of the tune and the artist. So you start navigating your iPhone’s screen looking for Apple’s own Shazam app, but by the time you find it and tap on the icon, the song has come to an end and it is too late. Until you hear that song again, it will probably remain a mystery in your mind.

    Sure, you can try to speed up this process by adding Shazam to the Control Center, something that has been available to iPhone users since the iOS 14.2 update. Go to Settings > Control Center and look for Music Recognition and the Shazam logo.

    An App Clip is a small part of an app that can be downloaded to your device quickly, and it contains the part of the app that you need without having to install the whole thing. With the Shazam App Clip, the next time you just have to know whether that song playing at the mall was an old Guster tune, go to the Control Center and tap on Shazam. After iOS 14.6 is disseminated, you will see a tile-shaped prompt asking if you want to “explore your music.”

    Tap on the prompt and you’ll get all of the information about the mystery song that you want to know including the lyrics, the ability to play it on Apple Music, and a link to download the full Shazam app. The update to iOS 14.6 is due to be released very shortly, so if you’re music curious, you might want to install the Shazam App Clip as soon as you update your iPhone. Don’t forget that you don’t have to wait for an invitation from the App Clip to install the full Shazam app which is available right now in the App Store.

    By the way, when you hear a song you like and don’t know the name or the artist, instead of using Shazam, you can always ask Siri “What is the name of this song?”

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  • Important Google Photos storage policy changes rolling out in June

    Important Google Photos storage policy changes rolling out in June

    It’s no secret that Google will no longer offer unlimited free photo and video backup at “high quality” come June 2021. The Mountain View company announced late last year a change to its high-quality storage policy, which will drop as early as June 1.

    So, starting next month, Google will roll out the new changes so that any new photos and video users back up will count toward the free 15GB of storage that comes with every Google Account or the additional storage purchased as a Google One member.

    However, there are a couple of things that Google Photos users should know before the new storage policy change comes into effect on June 1. First off, any photos or videos that you backed up in high quality before June 1, 2021, will not count toward your Google Account storage. Yes, these photos and videos will remain free and exempt from the storage limit.

    Another important aspect that Google Photos users should be aware of is that Google estimates that more than 80 percent of its users should still be able to store roughly three more years of memories in high quality with the free 15GB of storage.

    If your storage nears 15GB, you’ll receive a notification from Google directly in the app, as well as via email. All Google Photos users should see an estimate that takes into account how frequently they back up photos, videos, and other content to their Google Account.

    Furthermore, Google announced it will roll out a new tool in the Photos app that will help users manage the photos and videos they’ve back up that count toward their storage quota. The new storage management tool will display photos and videos that can potentially be deleted due to being blurry or too large.

    Last but not least, to make it less confusing for Google Photos users, the search giant will rename its high-quality storage tier to Storage saver. Until this change is deployed, all photos and videos will continue to be stored at the same high quality.

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  • Lovekins commits to helping end period poverty

    Lovekins commits to helping end period poverty

    Lovekins has partnered with women’s charity Share the Dignity to help end period poverty and the social stigma associated with periods in the run-up to World Menstrual Health Day.

    Every dollar spent on sanitary pads purchased from the Lovekins website will be matched with a donation to Share the Dignity.

    Once the brand reaches $10,000 in donations, a digital vending machine that dispenses free sanitary napkins will be installed within a disadvantaged community, ensuring accessibility of pads and tampons to those who need them.

    In addition, the brand will give away 100 packs of sanitary pads to every school in Australia via a social-media campaign in hopes of reducing the number of girls missing their class in school because of inaccessibility to period care resources.

    “World Menstrual Health Day is the perfect opportunity to start a conversation about period poverty and reduce the stigma,” said Amanda Essery, founder and CEO of Lovekins.

    “The more we talk about periods, the less taboo they will be. By working together, we can make a significant change for generations to come.”

    Period poverty is a global problem that affects women fleeing domestic violence, homelessness, or low socio-economic backgrounds. The inaccessibility to period products often interrupts the education of girls who are forced to miss their school.

    “Our brand mission is to nurture and protect women, mothers and babies with products they can trust. Through this partnership, we want to carry the message on by supporting women in need and empowering them, so their periods don’t limit their opportunity to access education, employment or live a happy and fulfilled life,” she added.

    Founder and MD of Share the Dignity, Rochelle Courtenay, said she’s excited to have such a progressive brand as Lovekins support their mission.

    “When we work together, we amplify our voices to make a difference for those in need,” said Courtenay.

    “I’m excited to work together to ensure that every woman, every girl, everywhere has access to period products to manage their period with the dignity they deserve.”

  • How is the Worldwide Industrial Production Faring?

    How is the Worldwide Industrial Production Faring?

    According to the IMF’s World Economic outlook, the global economic climate is becoming increasingly brighter. For example, global growth of 6% is now projected for 2021, with this incrementally higher than the previous forecast offered in October last year,

    However, the nature of the global coronavirus recovery is a little more complex, with some sectors of the economy faring considerably better than others across the globe.

    In this post, we’ll take a look at the world’s industrial production output, casting our eyes over the dominant Eurozone and US regions.

    Appraising Disappointing Production in the Eurozone

    We’ll start in the Eurozone, where industrial production in Germany showcased a lesser-than-expected rebound in March.

    This is according to the official data published by Eurostat, which suggests that the recovery within the region’s manufacturing sector remains mired in doubt and negative growth.

    Broker analysts noted that the industrial output for the bloc was measured at just 0.1% month-on-month in March, against an expected 0.7% increase that was forecast for the same period.

    On an annualised basis, the industrial output soared by 10.9%, although once again this was pitted directly against a four-week forecast of 11.7%. So, although the green shoots of growth can be seen in the most recent monthly data, it’s fair to say production in the Eurozone remains lower than even the most conservative forecasts.

    Unsurprisingly, Germany’s disappointing production figures impacted directly on the bloc’s single currency, with the EUR/USD dropping by 0.13% to just 1.2130.

    This price was further underpinned by broad-based and relative dollar strength and the upcoming US CPI data, which may reinforce recent losses in the near-term.

    So, is the Global Recovery in Doubt? 

    Of course, the Eurozone figures should be viewed in the correct context, both in terms of the wider global perspective and the fact that growth is prevalent in Germany’s production figures.

    After all, American industry appeared to rebound in March as the US recovered from its own unusually uncertain February. During this time, industrial production stateside (including output at factories, mines and utilities) increased by 1.4% overall, reversing a 2.6% decline in the previous month.

    This casts the world’s manufacturing niche in a far more positive light, as does the fact that some individual stocks and sectors are expected to outperform global production rates in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

    For example, the Spirax-Sarco group has projected growth rates above the increased forecast for global IP expansion, thanks largely to increased demand triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

    More specifically, the group’s Watson-Marlow fluid technology subsidiary is expected to see 55% organic sales growth due to coronavirus-related demand, while the Electric Thermal Solutions brand ended 2020 with a much higher than normal order book.

    This type of bullish trend is prevalent in various sectors and regions across the globe, and there’s no doubt that this will help to support worldwide industrial output through 2021 and beyond.

     

     

     

     

  • Gaming on cloud nine

    Gaming on cloud nine

    Console and game developers constantly have to reinvent themselves in order to stay ahead of the competition, and it would appear that cloud gaming is the next big thing in playing online games. According to gaming experts, the year 2021 is shaping up to be a significant year for cloud gaming. According to experts, Microsoft will be a substantial source of cloud gaming sales in 2021. Several companies have been attempting to create “cloud gaming” for a few years now. This is similar to how Apple Music or Spotify download music, except for video games.

    Let’s look at some of the platforms that will be offering these services and how they differ.

    Google Stadia 

    Google is constantly trying to improve their user experiences. Google Stadia is the first actual long-term forecast for cloud gaming. Gamers are about to get a welcome reprieve after spending years bound to the console update cycle. Stadia gives you access to an ever-expanding digital game library that works on any computer. We’ve finally put it to the test in our own house, and we can confidently claim that it’s a genuine console alternative and, in time, a possible platform killer. It does a lot of things correctly. The service offers on-the-go streaming via phones and tablets, as well as at home on PCs and Chromecast, in addition to remarkably enjoyable output with little to no latency on our home network. Furthermore, Stadia includes built-in YouTube Gaming live-streaming and, if you purchase the Premiere Edition, an ergonomic Wi-Fi controller that decreases latency, demonstrating Google’s thorough examination of Stadia.

    Like every other streaming service, your experience would be drastically different depending on your distance from Google’s servers and your communication speed. Unlike consoles, which work about the same from one place to the next, there’s no guarantee that we’ll all have the same experience when it comes to game-streaming. There are a few minor issues with the service that will be resolved over time, but if Google can clear up the mystery surrounding Pro and turn on all of the functionality it promised, it might be the end-all game-streaming site.

    Project X-Cloud 

    Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is simply a monthly subscription that includes various providers. Subscribers get Xbox Game Pass for consoles, PC, Xbox Live Gold, EA Play, and access to Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta) on Android devices all in one package. That means you’ll be able to choose from a wide range of games on console or PC, all of which you’ll be able to play online, and you might never have to buy a game on the Xbox One or one of the recent Xbox Series S / Xbox Series X consoles again. You won’t need an Xbox or a PC to play your favourite games for the first time because you can stream them from the cloud to your computer.

    Link problems and video latency remind you that this isn’t a 1 to 1 experience, but we’re getting closer to making the ‘on the go’ console gaming experience. Combining Game Pass with XCloud is a very appealing prospect, mainly because Game Pass is still one of the best deals in gaming. Since everybody has a phone and lots of people have controllers, the ability to throw your controller in your pocket and access your Xbox library from anywhere might be a big selling point for Microsoft.

    Nvidia GeForce

    Nvidia has been working on its GeForce Now subscription service for a few years, and it has now graduated from beta to a fully commercially available subscription service. Though it isn’t ideal, it is a convenient and user-friendly service for playing PC games on non-gaming computers. Free and Founders membership tiers are eligible for GeForce Now. The Founders membership gives you preferential access to Nvidia’s systems, as well as streaming with RTX ray-tracing allowed and six-hour gaming sessions. The free membership disables RTX and only allows you to play for an hour at a time before having to wait in line to use Nvidia’s computers again.

    GeForce Now, like all other game streaming services, demands a lot of internet bandwidth and speed. For 720p60 game streaming, you’ll need at least a 15Mbps link, and for 1080p60 game streaming, you’ll need at least a 25Mbps connection. To link to your router, you’ll need either a wired or a 5GHz Wi-Fi connection. Although there are a lot of games available, you might have trouble finding them because the user interface for selecting games isn’t very good.

    Conclusion

    Although each of the three platforms has advantages and disadvantages, it appears that the cloud gaming industry is waiting for most people’s internet speeds to improve. The technology exists and performs admirably under ideal conditions. However, the inconsistency of options for playing games you already own on the go means that none of these services will be as familiar or reliable as console gaming for a long time. Regardless of this, the future appears very exciting, and this new technology could attract new gamers.

     

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