As we see the world of subscriptions become increasingly dominant in the TV and movie spheres, some wonder if it’s matter of time before it happens to games. While this may sound rather unappealing to many, Xbox chief strategy officer Matthew Ball was reported in numerous outlets recently that he made comments supporting the implementation of in-game ads. According to a post of his on X however, he wrote that he was “…asked about a comment I made before being hired at XBOX (…) and that I am not stating the company’s plans or beliefs”. He did however say that ads could still be used to offer ad-based subscriptions alongside ad-free subscriptions, but goes on to say he never mentioned in-game ads.
This is not correct:
• In the interview, I am asked about a comment I made before being hired at XBOX, then state that I was only 10 days into the role, and that I am not stating the company’s plans or beliefs
• What I do say is that ads should be used to offer more affordable…— Matthew Ball (@ballmatthew) June 12, 2026
That being said, it’s not hard to see how such comments could be interpreted that way. In a recent interview with The Game Business, Ball stated, “There is two-sided problem. The costs have gone up way too high on development, and at the same point, everyone feels terrible with prices going up on hardware or software or microtransactions. (…) I think the best evidence comes from the [TV] streaming space (…) In excess of 100% of net adds in the United States for years and years have been on the ad-supported tier. That has not excluded anyone from ad-free experiences”. Before joining Microsoft, Matthew Ball worked as a games industry analyst, and in his “The State of Video Gaming in 2026” report he predicted that game publishers would move towards subscription based models to create another revenue stream that helps keep the cost of gaming low.
In an earlier interview with The Game Business from February of this year, Ball said, “…we don’t want layoffs, we don’t want fewer games, we don’t just want the same games… we don’t want price increases. The money needs to come in one way or another” and made mention of the successes of Hulu, Peacock, Disney+, and Netflix. And while Ball has clarified he does not currently support the implementation of in-game advertising, it wouldn’t be surprising if it’s considered somewhere down the line. While this may sound extremely unlikeable to most gamers (and in previous implementations already was), it has shown success in the world of streaming, making it more appealing for game companies. Overall, one can hope that such a strategy is never implemented as it would drastically alter the way online gaming exists, and likely not for the better.