Gamers who have signed up to Microsoft’s Xbox Live Gold membership have been used to fixed prices though bad news could be on the horizon. But this is only if you happen to reside in the six territories where price adjustments will reportedly be made.
Microsofts’s paid service, Xbox Live Gold has pampered gamers by offering access and a lot of features to the avid gamers who own the Xbox One or Xbox 360 game console. Though there are some who prefer to stick to the free membership service, Xbox Live Free, it remains that such would depend on the degree of game addiction individuals would have.
Under the Games with Gold for the Xbox Live Gold, members can look forward to at least two free games monthly for about $40 from an original $60. However, there could be some territories that may be in for some price hikes mostly due to local currency fluctuations.
Countries affected
It was recently reported that Xbox Live Gold prices in six territories are set to be hiked. The territories affected are Austria, Hungary, Israel, South Africa, Sweden, and Turkey.
"We occasionally update pricing in a given market to provide a balance of service and value, and in some instances, meet currency fluctuations within the region, and will be adjusting the price of Xbox Live Gold subscription in a small number of markets on June 20, 2016," explains a Microsoft representative.
It remains to be seen how much the price difference will be for the territories mentioned since there could be a lot of other factors in play. Some speculate that the prices could be around $9.99 a month. In South Africa, members are charged $10.33 a month or $63 annually.
Forecasted new prices
For other countries, here are some of the forecasted prices via Game Informer:
- Hungary: 2,000 Ft ($7.19/ month)
- Israel: 37.99 ILS ($10.05/ month)
- Sweden: 79 kr ($9.58/ month)
- Turkey: 18.99 TL ($6.40/ month)
There is no word yet on Austria which makes use of the EURO currency. The case of Austria may need further deliberation due to currency exchanges.
It will be interesting to see if these changes will affect the number of gamers subscribing to Xbox Live Gold. A likely option for some is to content themselves with the Xbox Live Free for the time being.