PlayFab's Backend Platform Transitions to Completely Free Model With Launch of PlayFab Services Marketplace

SEATTLE, Dec. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- PlayFab, the industry's most powerful platform for game operations, today announced its move to a fully free pricing model in conjunction with the launch of its new Services Marketplace, which enables game developers to integrate key services from leading vendors with the push of a button. Designed to reduce SDK fatigue, one of the biggest pain points faced by modern developers, the Services Marketplace has a growing list of more than a dozen current and upcoming services that are pre-integrated into PlayFab's existing suite of backend services. Launch partners include Kochava's mobile attribution tracking technology, Innervate's player community tools, Exit Game's Photon multiplayer backend, and Appuri's customer data and analytics platform.

As the global games industry continues its rapid growth, expected to reach $91 billion this year (according to NewZoo), the industry ecosystem has become increasingly fragmented, leaving game developers to consider services from hundreds of disparate providers, none of which are designed to work together. Developers are unwillingly pushed into the role of systems integrator, and games often launch with a dozen or more SDKs, any one of which is a possible point of failure.

"This is the biggest productivity boost for game developers since Unity launched its asset store in 2010," said James Gwertzman, founder and CEO of PlayFab. "Modern games depend on sophisticated backend technology to compete. By integrating PlayFab's unified operations console and core backend services with more specialized best-of-breed services from across the gaming ecosystem, we give game developers the flexibility they need to piece together the perfect backend for their game – and at a fraction of the cost or time of doing it from scratch. And since the launch of our Marketplace allows us to provide our core services for free, there's no reason for any game to launch with a sub-standard backend ever again."

PlayFab's move to free gives developers complete access to PlayFab's powerful platform. At no cost, and with no cap on the number of players, games can leverage core services such as authentication, player profiles, cloud scripting, in-game commerce, content management, multiplayer matchmaking, leader boards, reporting, in-game messaging, and more. Developers pay only for premium support and the premium Marketplace services they choose to enable. Through this approach, PlayFab helps developers future-proof their games, ensuring that all backend technology and vendor integrations are kept up to date and that new third-party services are folded into the Marketplace as they become available.

Innervate was one of the first service providers to join the Marketplace, with player-facing community tools that help developers boost retention and engagement across all platforms. Harebrained Schemes, the developer behind upcoming PC title BATTLETECH, is one of several developers already taking advantage of Innervate's services through PlayFab. With Innervate, Harebrained Schemes was able to launch the game's community site the same day its wildly popular Kickstarter campaign closed with more than $2.8 million in backing. The site allows fans and Kickstarter backers to establish player accounts in advance of the game's release, and begin engaging with the developer and each other.

"A great community site is a lot more than just forums," said Adam Lieb, CEO of Innervate. "Before PlayFab, integrating with a game's backend was the most expensive and time consuming part of launching a new site, keeping it out of the reach of most developers. But with the PlayFab Marketplace, our team was able to do a one-time integration with PlayFab's platform, and now can seamlessly deliver community tools for any game built on PlayFab in just hours. This allows us to open up the benefits of higher player retention and engagement to a much wider group of developers than we could ever afford to reach before."

"BATTLETECH is one of the biggest games we've ever made. We wanted to focus our resources on game play and design, and not on building a backend from scratch," said Jordan Weisman, CEO of Harebrained Schemes. "PlayFab offered everything we needed, not just the operations tools and multiplayer support, but also integrations with services like Innervate which we are using for our community web platform."

At launch, add-ons available through the Marketplace include Kochava for attribution tracking; Appuri and Segment for analytics; Photon for multiplayer; GitHub for content management, and Adrian Crook & Associates for game operation consulting. Other add-ons that are coming soon include Branch for deep links; Gondola and Xsolla for monetization; Omniata for analytics; OneSignal and Teak for marketing; and ZenDesk for customer support.

PlayFab's Marketplace and core backend services are available to game developers on all platforms, including mobile, tablet, PC, and console, with integration across Steam, Apple, Facebook, Google, Amazon, Xbox, and PSN. PlayFab's core services are free, and Marketplace service pricing varies per provider. Premium support and enterprise services such as private server clusters and higher SLA's are also available.  

For game developers and service providers interested in learning more and signing up for PlayFab Marketplace, visit: https://playfab.com/marketplace

About PlayFab, Inc.
Based in Seattle, PlayFab provides the game development industry's most powerful platform for backend technology and video game operations. PlayFab's platform delivers essential technology solutions that enable game developers of all sizes to focus on creating great games for mobile, PC and consoles. In addition to offering its backend technology as a completely free service, PlayFab also offers Marketplace, where developers can tap into a robust set of pre-integrated vendor services with the push of a button. The company's cross-platform technology integrates across Steam, Apple, Facebook, Google, Amazon, Xbox, and PSN. For more information, visit playfab.com.

SOURCE PlayFab

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