Technology 2 min read

Facebook Acquires Cloud Video Gaming Company PlayGiga

Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com

Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com

Facebook has acquired Spanish cloud video gaming company PlayGiga, a move that could usher the social media giant into cloud gaming. While the terms of the acquisition are still a bit hazy, reports suggest that the deal costs $78 million.

PlayGiga was founded back in 2013.

Earlier in the year, the company’s CEO, Javier Polo, wrote that the startup was working with telcos to develop game streaming technology for 5G. That way, tech companies would be able to reach more mobile gamers.

PlayGiga also developed a gaming-as-a-service platform using Intel‘s Visual Cloud Platform. However, the operation has reportedly wound down in recent times.

Following Facebook’s acquisition, the main page of the gaming company’s website read:

“We are excited to announce that the PlayGiga team is moving on to something new. And we are continuing our work in cloud gaming, now with a new mission. We want to thank all of our partners and customers for their support over the years.”

So, why does the social media company need a cloud gaming service?

Using PlayGiga to Expand Into Cloud Gaming Market

Cloud gaming may be the most popular tech trend in 2019.

Last month, Google launched its $9.99 per month gaming service, Stadia, which allows users to play games in the cloud. Similarly, Microsoft started previewing its xCloud gaming service back in October.

Even Apple launched its online gaming service, Apple Arcade, in November. Meanwhile, Sony reduced the price of its PlayStation Now video game subscription service to $9.99 per month.

Since Facebook has been dabbling into the gaming markets in recent years, it’s not surprising that the company is now considering cloud gaming.

In 2014, Facebook acquired Oculus for $2 billion and, it began selling the VR headsets – Oculus Quest and Oculus Rift – this year.

Two years later, it announced Instant games, light HTML 5 games for Facebook and Messenger. Last year, the company announced Facebook Gaming to enable users to live-stream their gameplay to others on the social media platform.

The PlayGiga acquisition implies that the social media giant is ready to join the cloud gaming trend.

Read More: In-Game Advertising Is Taking Off, and Here’s Why

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Sumbo Bello

Sumbo Bello is a creative writer who enjoys creating data-driven content for news sites. In his spare time, he plays basketball and listens to Coldplay.

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