Last week, Unity rolled out a new look version of its controversial Runtime Fee in the wake of a seismic backlash from developers who felt the original policy represented an egregious act of betrayal for a myriad of reasons.
Unity reportedly may put a cap on its unpopular Runtime Fee
19.09.2023 - 15:53 / destructoid.com / Jason Schreier / Runtime Fee
Ever since Unity first announced its plans for a new runtime install fee, it’s been trying to put flex tape over it with clarifications and responses. Now, it looks like there may be some backpedaling on the horizon. To some extent, at least.
According to Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier, Unity may opt to cap its upcoming – and highly unpopular – new fees at 4%.
We have heard you. We apologize for the confusion and angst the runtime fee policy we announced on Tuesday caused. We are listening, talking to our team members, community, customers, and partners, and will be making changes to the policy. We will share an update in a couple of…
The report goes on to say that this would be for studios/games that are making over $1 million, and that installs won’t be retroactively counted. On top of this, installs will be calculated based on a “a developer’s self-reported data rather than Unity’s own nebulous estimate methodology.”
A week ago, Unity performed an almost impressive display of self-immolation by introducing Runtime Fees as part of its new pricing plan. The policy goes into effect on January 1, 2024, and will mean that studios that have built games through Unity will have to pay a monthly fee for every new install.
This caused an immediate outcry from the community, with developers swearing off the company and its products. While Unity did try to clarify that this fee wouldn’t affect the vast majority of game companies, the announcement was met with an enormous amount of derision and backlash.
There have been previous attempts to undo some of the damage. Recently, Unity issued an apology and said it would look into “making changes to the policy.” While there’s been no official word yet, Schreier’s report gives some indication that the company may now have finally grasped the enormity of its own public flogging.
The website gametalkz.com is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Top Authors
Popular Topics
gamedeveloper.com
25.09.2023 / 16:09
Unity removed terms of service from Github because "views were so low"
A Unity representative claims the company pulled its terms of service (ToS) from Github because "views were so low."
techradar.com
25.09.2023 / 09:49
Game developers express concerns over trust following amended Unity Runtime Fee
On Friday (September 22), game engine Unity announced that it was making changes to its controversial upcoming Runtime Fee, and developers have been sharing their thoughts on the amended policy.
rockpapershotgun.com
23.09.2023 / 21:37
Unity are changing how their heavily criticised "runtime fee" works
Unity have announced that they're making changes to their "runtime fee" in response to overwhelming negative feedback. The key changes are that the fees no longer apply to developers using Unity Personal, and will only apply to developers using Unity Pro or Unity Enterprise who upgrade the next version of Unity which ships in 2024.
gamedeveloper.com
22.09.2023 / 20:17
Unity apologizes to devs, reveals updated Runtime Fee policy
Next Up: Read Game Developer's interview with Unity Create President Marc Whitten , discussing the road to the changes below and what Unity has learned from the backlash surrounding the original Runtime Fee policy.
techcrunch.com
22.09.2023 / 18:59
Unity U-turns on controversial runtime fee and begs forgiveness
Unity has done a 180 on a controversial new pricing scheme that users of its cross-platform game engine almost unanimously disparaged. A new pricing policy is still incoming, but it’s far less fraught for independent developers, many of whom threatened to leave the engine and platform behind rather than pay.
destructoid.com
22.09.2023 / 18:41
Unity walking back parts of its controversial runtime fee
In an open letter to its community, Unity has revealed its reworked free structure and controversial runtime fee changes. Under the new structure, the Unity Personal edition will remain free and incur no runtime fee. The new cap before the fee starts has been increased from $100,000 to $200,000, and no game with under $1 million in trailing 12-month revenue will be subject to the fee. Interestingly, the new Runtime Fee will only apply to the next version of Unity that is shipping in 2024. Already shipped and current in-development projects will not be subject to the fee unless they upgrade to the 2024 version of Unity. In the post, Marc Whitten, leader of the Unity Create team apologized for what has transpired in recent weeks.
gamesindustry.biz
22.09.2023 / 18:25
Unity kills Runtime Fee for Personal users, offers rev share for others
Unity has unveiled its planned changes to the controversial Runtime Fee policy that would charge developers fees on a per-install basis.
techradar.com
22.09.2023 / 18:21
Unity is making some changes to its controversial Runtime Fee, thanks community for its “hard feedback”
The president of Unity Create, Marc Whitten, has published an open letter responding to the backlash over the recent Unity Runtime Fee announcement, and has outlined a number of changes that are going to be made to the policy before it’s enforced in 2024.
techradar.com
20.09.2023 / 10:11
Terraria developer Re-Logic responds to Unity Runtime Fee by donating $200,000 to open-source engines
Re-Logic, the indie game developer and publisher behind the 2D sandbox title Terraria, has condemned the newly announced Unity Runtime Fee, and has announced that it is donating a substantial sum of money to two different open-source game engines, to help keep them “powerful and approachable for developers everywhere”.
droidgamers.com
19.09.2023 / 18:49
Unity Says Sorry – But How Much Are They Walking Back Their Runtime Fee Policy?
Controversy at Unity seems to be the story that never ends at the moment. Though today it appears that the owners of the popular game engine may be about to concede, at least a little, on the Unity Runtime Fee announcement that set the developer world on fire last week.
techradar.com
19.09.2023 / 16:55
Unity's Runtime Fee policy forces studios to push back with over 500 developers joining in protest
More than 500 developers have joined the protest against Unity's Runtime Fee policy by switching off monetization.