A newly published Microsoft patent application describes a system that would pause a game to show ads and then reward players with extra play time. The filing lays out how those interruptions could be timed so they do not cost a player an online match.
Microsoft Files Patent That Plans to Insert Ads in Games
The application is titled "Contextually Aware Management of Interactive Software Application Access." It was filed in April and published in early September, and it builds on an earlier application filed in May 2023.
The filing tries to solve a timing problem: how streaming video can be supported by ads through regular breaks, and those breaks are easy to place in content that is not interactive.
Games are harder, since it is difficult to predict when a player can safely stop. The patent says many online games cannot be paused, so a badly timed break could mean losing a match or being cut off from teammates.
How Will Microsoft's In-Game Ads Work Once Added?
Under the system, a piece of software called a content management system waits for a trigger event from the game. When it gets one, it suspends the player's interaction, plays promoted audiovisual content, meaning an ad, and then lets the player continue.
The game may be paused, suspended, or restricted at the operating system level while the ad plays. The patent gives a racing game as an example, where the car would be stopped so it cannot crash during the ad.
Three kinds of triggers are described. Developers could add hints, such as the end of a chapter. Players could choose the moment themselves, with an on-screen notice and a countdown showing when the ad is coming.
A machine learning model could also watch the gameplay and spot moments like save screens, round end screens, or pause screens. That model would learn to avoid interrupting exciting or rare moments.
According to ComicBook Gaming, watching an ad earns what amounts to an ad credit, and that credit delays the next interruption for a set duration. That duration could be a length of time like 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or an hour, or it could be based on progress, such as five rounds, one level, or three online matches. The length can change by mode. One example gives an hour in a practice mode, 30 minutes in a single-player campaign, and 20 minutes in online multiplayer.
The system sets a window near the end of a credit, such as the last 20 percent, the last 10 percent, or the last two to five minutes, so ads would not appear at random. Hints that arrive earlier are ignored, and one that arrives inside the window becomes the trigger. Players can also watch extra ads to earn more credits.
Is This for Xbox Cloud Gaming or Streaming?
The filing does not mention Xbox Cloud Gaming by name, so it is not clear where the system would be used. It refers to interactive software applications in general, and says the game could run locally on a laptop, desktop, video game console, smart television, smartphone, or headset, or on a remote streaming server that sends video to the player.
Even so, the filing has a clear streaming link. The patent compares its approach to ad-supported streaming video, and its claims include a version where the game runs on a remote device and the video is sent to the client. That makes Microsoft's cloud gaming service a possible fit, especially since many streaming platforms already offer an ad-supported tier, but the filing does not confirm that plan.
The patent also argues that placing interruptions at fitting moments could improve the player experience.
