A Potential Earthquake in the Videogame Industry: UNITY Install Fees

[Parmandur]

I'll have to keep my eye on this development. I'm a fan of Hollow Knight, and I'm eagerly looking forward to Silksong...but this could crush my enthusiasm for both instantly.

It would not sour me on the games, but thst might bankrupt Team Cherry which sort of ticks me off.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

The number of "demo" installs is potentially unlimited, if they connect to an Ultimate user. Imagine a professional GM who runs multiple campaigns for different groups, or someone who has several different online-only groups.

Yup! This could be very bad.

 

[Lidgar]

 

[Parmandur]

Jeez, as more details come oit, this makes the "OGL 2.0" look like a good idea in comparison.

 

[Ryujin]

Jeez, as more details come oit, this makes the "OGL 2.0" look like a good idea in comparison.

I feel like this has Slim Pickens style potential.

 

[Storyteller Hero]

Another update from the Axios reporter:


"NEW - I got a major update from Unity about their new fees

• Unity "regrouped" and now says ONLY the initial installation of a game triggers a fee
• Demos mostly won't trigger fees
• Devs not on the hook for Game Pass"

 

[CleverNickName]

Well, it's certainly less terrible. But still kinda terrible.

 

[Storyteller Hero]

Looks like Unity posted Q & A on their forums.

https://forum.unity.com/threads/unity-plan-pricing-and-packaging-updates.1482750/

Something sounds bat****-insane about this part:

Q: Is software made in unity going to be calling home to unity whenever it's ran, even for enterprice licenses?
A: We use a composite model for counting runtime installs that collects data from numerous sources. The Unity Runtime Fee will use data in compliance with GDPR and CCPA. The data being requested is aggregated and is being used for billing purposes.

Q: If a user reinstalls/redownloads a game / changes their hardware, will that count as multiple installs?
A: Yes. The creator will need to pay for all future installs. The reason is that Unity doesn’t receive end-player information, just aggregate data.

This is not going to blow over well with companies likely to go over the threshold like Niantic. Pokemon has to go call the lawyers.

 

[Ryujin]

A little disclosure, for those not aware. John Riccitiello, CEO of Unity, was formerly CEO of EA. He resigned due to EA's poor financial performance. Over the last year he has reportedly sold more than 50,000 shared in Unity and purchased none. It is not stated how many shares he currently holds.

Unity Software Inc's President and CEO John Riccitiello Sells 2,000 Shares

On September 6, 2023, John Riccitiello, President and CEO of Unity Software Inc (NYSE:U), sold 2,000 shares of the company.

finance.yahoo.com

 

[deganawida]

A little disclosure, for those not aware. John Riccitiello, CEO of Unity, was formerly CEO of EA. He resigned due to EA's poor financial performance. Over the last year he has reportedly sold more than 50,000 shared in Unity and purchased none. It is not stated how many shares he currently holds.

Unity Software Inc's President and CEO John Riccitiello Sells 2,000 Shares

On September 6, 2023, John Riccitiello, President and CEO of Unity Software Inc (NYSE:U), sold 2,000 shares of the company.

finance.yahoo.com

That confirms what I thought when my youngest told me that it was led by a former EA CEO. I immediately thought of Riccitello, the man who killed Pandemic and made BioWare mediocre in released games (IMO).