Microsoft acquires PlayFab to enhance Azure’s gaming credentials

Microsoft has announced that they have acquired PlayFab, a company that provides server-based infrastructure and back-end systems for online games. 

Right now PlayFab powers over 1,200 active games, offering services for Disney, Bandai Namco, Capcom and Wizards of the Coast, offering scalable game services, as well as in-depth analytics tools. This acquisition is designed to bolster Microsoft’s Azure cloud services, creating a stronger platform for game servers and other online infrastructure. This deal will help Microsoft compete with Amazon in the gaming market.   

At this time the terms of Microsoft’s deal with PlayFab are unknown, though PlayFab will benefit from Microsoft’s global reach and resources as much as Microsoft will benefit from PlayFab’s expertise. 

Right now PlayFab boasts that the company processes over 1.5 billion transactions per day, which is around 20,000 transactions per second. PlayFab’s CEO and Co-Founder, James Gwertzman stated the company’s growth so hard has been due to a fundamental change in the gaming industry. 

      Matt and I launched PlayFab four years ago to solve a burning need. Games were rapidly shifting from packaged goods, sold in boxes, to “always on” digital services, requiring sophisticated server-based infrastructure to host and operate. Built well, these backend systems enabled games to engage, retain, and monetize players like never before, with longevity in the top grossing charts measured in years. Built poorly, they crashed and burned on launch day.