Microsoft has begun rolling out a la carte Cloud Playtime purchases to Xbox Insiders, letting players stream games they already own for a metered fee. Ars Technica reports the introductory pricing is $4 for 10 hours, $8 for 25 hours, and $12 for 50 hours, working out to 24 to 40 cents per hour. The purchased time does not expire, but it is separate from any Game Pass subscription and requires the user to own a cloud-playable game or have free-to-play access.
Unlike Game Pass, which bundles streaming hours for a flat subscription, this new model stacks a usage fee on top of the upfront game purchase. The report notes that this resembles arcade pricing, except players must also buy the cabinet. It also differs from Google Stadia, which offered unlimited streaming for purchased games, and from Sony's early PlayStation Now rentals, which later gave way to an all-you-can-stream subscription.
Microsoft is also letting Insiders test free, ad-supported streams of owned games, but says paid users get shorter wait times and higher-quality streaming. The company previously said only 4 percent of Game Pass subscribers would be affected by the new five-to-15-hour monthly streaming limits, suggesting limited mainstream demand for cloud streaming. The question now is how many non-subscribers will pay by the hour for access to games they already own.