When it comes to gaming, Reliance-owned telecom major Jio is not the first name that comes to mind. That is also partly because Jio has been quietly working on a cloud gaming platform, the beta launch of which came to the notice of a select few. And now, yet again, in a subtle announcement, Jio just ramped up its push into cloud gaming with the scaling up of the country’s homegrown cloud gaming platform.
This comes courtesy of a strategic partnership between JioGames and Gamestream – which is known to offer white-labeling cloud gaming solutions to several global players – for a period of 10 years. According to an official statement, this joining of forces will enable both parties to provide “1.4 billion Indians: with unlimited access to cloud gaming anytime and anywhere.
JioGamesCloud – the homegrown cloud gaming platform – is set to enable console-like gaming easily across devices, and according to Jio, its collaboration with the French firm will scale the cloud gaming platform and make it available to users across multiple devices, while adding over 100 cult licenses for families and casual gamers alike, with additional games added each month. Under the partnership, JioGamesCloud will also utilize Gamestream’s end-to-end technological solution and content licensing expertise. Gamestream is a suitable choice in this regard, given that it has a presence all across the globe and has partnered with some of the biggest names in the gaming sector, such as Assassin’s Creed maker Ubisoft.
As of now, JioGamesCloud is still in its beta phase, and Jio offers it free of cost across Jio Set Top Box, Android Smartphones, and select web browsers. Those who are part of the beta can play 50 games – such as Victor Vran, Shadow Tactics, The Uncertain, Flashback, Grid, and more – for free. To sweeten the deal, the platform leverages Jio’s 5G network and infrastructure across the country to let users play games on its platform at 5G speeds and comes with an intuitive interface.
“We are known for our cutting-edge cloud gaming services in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East and have been empowering leading companies to introduce cloud gaming for years – the technology is our heartland, and we know the incredible impact it can have. This 10-year collaboration with JioGames combines our end-to-end technological solution and our content licensing expertise to democratize video games around the world. With JioGames, we are shaping the future of gaming,” said Ivan Lebeau, Co-founder, and President at Gamestream, in an official statement.
“India will soon be the new hub of the video game industry, with the potential of over 1 billion gamers thanks to the rapid deployment in India of Jio True 5G network, with high speed and low latency. Video games could become one of the digital services that contribute significantly to economic growth,” said Kiran Thomas, chief executive of Jio Platforms.
The gaming sector in India is a growing one, and after the pandemic-induced high over the past two years, stands poised to reach $8.6 billion by 2027. In the international arena, it may be a minnow when compared to the gaming market in the US – which was estimated to reach $90.13 billion last year – but India’s mobile gaming segment is a fast-growing one. This has attracted the attention of investors and enterprises alike – Amazon rolled out Prime gaming last year, and Jio is now ramping up its push into cloud gaming.
