I’m delighted to reveal the agenda for our GamesBeat Next 2023, which takes place in San Francisco on October 23-24.
Unity says it will be ‘making changes’ to its controversial install fee plans
18.09.2023 - 08:23 / videogameschronicle.com / Rami Ismail / Says It / Will
Unity says it will be “making changes” to its controversial install fee plans, following huge backlash from game developers.
Last week the software development companyannounced plans to charge developers every time a game that uses its Unity engine is installed.
Starting in January 2024, the proposed Unity Runtime Fee would apply to games that meet a minimum revenue threshold and have passed a minimum lifetime install count.
Following practically unanimous outcry from the developer community, the company has now released a statement saying it would be “making changes” to its plans.
“We have heard you,” the statement reads. “We apologise 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 days. Thank you for your honest and critical feedback.”
Reaction to the statement has been mixed, with some developers wary that Unity refers to “making changes to the policy” rather than outright saying it will scrap the Unity Runtime Fee in its entirety.
Notice: To display this embed please allow the use of Functional Cookies in Cookie Preferences.
Vlambeer co-founder Rami Ismail said: “It’s terrifying to think Unity leadership dragged this over the weekend leaving every studio out there with genuine existential concerns, and even now cannot simply go ‘our intent is to drop the per-install fee’. We have to be worried longer and we have to keep talking about this.”
Slime Rancher series director Nick Popovich added: “There was zero confusion. Just anger and total loss of trust that you would change existing contracts because you feel like it. This policy, modified in a couple days or not, retains the above.”
A number of other developers objected to the use of the word “confusion” in the statement, as they felt Unity was implying the issue was partly down to developers not understanding its plans.
“I’d really like it if they stopped telling us we’re confused,” said Bithell games founder Mike Bithell. “If anything, the issue is an over abundance of clarity.”
Last week Unity had to close its Austin and San Francisco offices and cancel a planned town hall meeting following what was reportedly a “credible death threat”.
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
tech.hindustantimes.com
06.10.2023 / 07:39
Elon Musk is testing 3 tiers of premium subscription on X, says CEO Linda Yaccarino
X (formerly Twitter) has begun testing three different tiers of its proposed premium subscription. The information came from the company CEO Linda Yaccarino in a meeting with debt holders as she updated the bankers about the finances and revenue of X, as per a report. It was also highlighted that the testing was done to increase the revenue collection from the subscription funnel. Additionally, X also stated during the meeting that the advertisers are returning back to the platform, although with smaller budgets.
venturebeat.com
05.10.2023 / 14:27
Atari will bring Berzerk Recharged to the PC and consoles this year
Atari, the nostalgia-inducing game company, is set to release Berzerk: Recharged on the PC and consoles later this year.
pcmag.com
03.10.2023 / 17:23
Cruise Robotaxi Runs Over Woman Thrown Into Its Path
A Cruise driverless car has been involved in another accident in San Francisco, and this time the robotaxi ran over a woman who was flung into the car’s path.
tech.hindustantimes.com
25.09.2023 / 08:49
Janitor AI lets you talk to virtual boyfriends, indulge in erotica! Check out the controversial NSFW chatbot
There have been rapid developments in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) in the last few years. The debut of OpenAI's ChatGPT in November 2022, has kickstarted an AI chatbot revolution and now every big tech company is developing their own conversational chatbots. Google, Microsoft, Tencent, and even Apple has been rumored to be working on their generative AI chatbots. In the Summer, an AI chatbot became extremely popular for offering a drastically different service in comparison to other chatbots there - NSFW chats, because of which it has been surrounded by controversy recently. Here's why.
venturebeat.com
22.09.2023 / 18:51
Unity backpedals, but we’re still confused
We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of «Playing the Edge.» Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!
venturebeat.com
21.09.2023 / 18:51
Ubisoft is making The Division 3 with Massive Entertainment
We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of «Playing the Edge.» Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!
venturebeat.com
20.09.2023 / 13:31
Mythical Games will bring Blankos Block Party to Web3 mobile players
We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of «Playing the Edge.» Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!
venturebeat.com
19.09.2023 / 17:11
How Wooga is staying focused on story-based gaming | Nai Chang interview
We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of «Playing the Edge.» Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!
pushsquare.com
19.09.2023 / 00:43
Unity Closes Multiple Offices, Cancels Town Hall Following Death Threat | Push Square
Update: Polygon reports that a «reporting party» told responding San Francisco police «an employee made a threat towards his employer using social media.” According to the police, the employee who allegedly made the threats works in an office outside of California.
rockpapershotgun.com
18.09.2023 / 19:03
Unity apologises for its disastrous pricing plans and promises changes (but not reversal) in wake of developer backlash
Unity has apologised to developers for “confusion and angst” caused by its proposed new pricing structure that sought to charge game creators a fee every time their game was installed, promising that changes will be made - but without suggesting that it would pull away completely from implementing the much-criticised plans.
venturebeat.com
18.09.2023 / 16:33
Unity founder says we ‘f*cked up’ with price increase and company prepares to backpedal
We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of «Playing the Edge.» Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!