According to rumours, Microsoft could be working on a family-friendly subscription model, which would give cheaper access to what many now call Game Pass without sharing an account (which is pretty standard with Netflix).

Windows Central reports that a Family Plan is in the works within Microsoft, and the site says that the model could be introduced by the “green team” as early as this year, with some exciting new features. For those who opt for the more expensive Xbox Game Pass Family Plan option, five players would get full access to the game library, and this subscription would be cheaper than five separate Game Pass subscriptions.

The company would use Microsoft’s Family Account system, which is already proven in Office 365. There is one limitation, though: you can only use the five accounts within one country, so you can’t, for example, have a relative in Germany playing with family members back in, say, Austria because Redmond won’t allow that, but who knows how that will be limited within the EU…

According to Jez Corden, writing for Windows Central, “I’d heard about Microsoft’s desire to create a Family Plan quite a while ago at this point, although there were details to work out about how royalties might be distributed, and how licenses from third-party publishers would be compensated for users who weren’t attached to the main plan. According to trusted sources familiar with Microsoft’s efforts, we can now confirm that Xbox is moving ahead with an Xbox Game Pass Family Plan, which should launch sometime this year.” (Maybe it will happen in the fall, but we’re just guessing here.)

It’s not official yet, of course, but if Microsoft has already set the groundwork for Office 365 and reached some agreement with publishers on the royalties, then it will indeed happen at some point. It’s just a question of when Microsoft will find the time. There’s no harm in saving money in a family model, but it does require several devices, but that’s not our business…

Source: WCCFTech