South Korea Seeks Favorable U.S. Tariff Terms on Memory Chip Imports 
California Attorney General Orders xAI to Halt Illegal Grok Deepfake Imagery 
SoftBank Shares Surge as AI Optimism Lifts Asian Tech Stocks 
ByteDance Finalizes Majority U.S.-Owned TikTok Joint Venture to Avert American Ban 
Tesla Plans FSD Subscription Price Hikes as Autonomous Capabilities Advance 
OpenAI Launches Stargate Community Plan to Offset Energy Costs and Support Local Power Infrastructure 
Apple Stock Jumps as Company Prepares Major Siri AI Chatbot Upgrade 
Nintendo Stock Jumps as Switch 2 Becomes Best-Selling Console in the U.S. in 2025 
TSMC Shares Hit Record High as AI Chip Demand Fuels Strong Q4 Earnings 
Apple China Holiday Sale Offers Discounts Up to 1,000 Yuan on Popular Devices 
Google Seeks Delay on Data-Sharing Order as It Appeals Landmark Antitrust Ruling 
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Plans China Visit Amid AI Chip Market Uncertainty 
HKEX’s Permissive IPO Rules Could Open Opportunities for Korea to Strengthen Its Position in International Listings 
Morgan Stanley Flags High Volatility Ahead for Tesla Stock on Robotaxi and AI Updates 
Global DRAM Chip Shortage Puts Automakers Under New Cost and Supply Pressure 
Microsoft Restores Microsoft 365 Services After Widespread Outage 
Sony is reportedly planning to introduce a video game subscription service that would rival Xbox Game Pass. However, it would also phase out PlayStation Now in the process.
Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass service has earned the moniker of being the Netflix of video games as its main offer is to give members access to a library of more than 100 video games for a monthly fee of $10 or $15. While Sony already offers PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now, the company has yet to introduce a service with an offer of the same scale.
However, that may change soon as Sony is reportedly working on a project codenamed Spartacus. Bloomberg's Jason Schreier reports that the planned PlayStation subscription service could launch in spring 2022 and would be offered to PS4 and PS5 users. Sony looks into merging the PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now in the upcoming service. While the PlayStation Plus brand is expected to be sustained, PlayStation Now could be phased out upon the launch of the Xbox Game Pass rival.
The internal documents reviewed by the publication suggest that the upcoming PlayStation subscription service could be available in three tiers. One of them will include PlayStation Plus offers, which currently include monthly free games on PS4 and PS5. The second tier is planned to offer a "large catalog" of PS4 games and PS5 titles later on. The third plan, which appears to be the top-tier option, will provide game demos, game streaming, and access to older titles launched on PS1, PS2, PS3, and PSP.
The report did not specifically mention if the Spartacus project would also give members day-one access to first-party titles produced by PlayStation Studios. But Sony's previous statements on the matter, despite the new report, strongly suggest it is unlikely to happen.
"Our pitch, as you've heard, is 'new games, great games.' We have had this conversation before -- we are not going to go down the road of putting new releases titles into a subscription model," PlayStation boss Jim Ryan told GamesIndustry.biz in September 2020. "These games cost many millions of dollars, well over $100 million, to develop. We just don't see that as sustainable."
One of the notable perks of subscribing to Xbox Game Pass is being able to play AAA and indie games from Xbox studios and third-party developers at launch. Without additional cost, Game Pass members can play titles like "Halo Infinite," "Forza Horizon 5," and the upcoming "Starfield" on launch day. The highly anticipated "The Elder Scrolls 6" is expected to get the same treatment.
Meanwhile, many were surprised when "MLB The Show 21" launched on Xbox consoles last April. It has been exclusive to PlayStation consoles for years because the franchise is developed and maintained by San Diego Studio — a subsidiary of PlayStation Studios. The game was also one of the high-profile third-party titles that came to Xbox Game Pass on day one.
Microsoft has also integrated the Xbox Cloud Gaming service to Xbox Game Pass, which became more widely available this year. xCloud currently supports Windows PC, Android and Apple devices, and Xbox consoles in certain regions. And the same report noted that it is also one thing that PlayStation is currently exploring.
