- Microsoft ends “Friends & Family” plan for Xbox Game Pass.
- Existing users will receive codes to switch to the Ultimate plan.
- The company also confirmed that Sony has agreed to the 10-deal to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation.
- Finally, Larry Hryb (Major Nelson) is leaving Microsoft after 20 years.
Microsoft is discontinuing the “Friends & Family” plan part of the Xbox Game Pass offering. According to a report from Eurogamer, a spokesperson has confirmed that the “Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family plan” will no longer be available after August 15, 2023.
The spokesperson noted, “The Friends & Family Preview will end on August 15, in all participating countries (Ireland, Colombia, New Zealand, Sweden, Israel, Chile, Hungary, and South Africa).” Furthermore, Microsoft has also stopped “accepting new registrations, and new member additions to existing plans will no longer be accepted after July 17.”
The Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family plan launched in September 2022, and it was originally designed to make the subscription a little more affordable by allowing users to share the benefits with up to four other people (five people in total when counting the primary account owner). Initially, the plan was available in Colombia and Ireland, but in February 2023, it spread out to eight countries in total.
It’s unclear the reason why the company is ending the plan and if it’ll ever be available in some other form, but the spokesperson said that the “Friends & Family preview was announced in August of 2022 with the intent to learn more about how to shape new Game Pass offerings.”
If you’re among those who signed up for the plan, the company will send Xbox Game Pass Ultimate codes for primary and secondary members to switch plans starting August 15, 2023. The code that users will receive will depend on the time left in the “Friends & Family” subscription. For instance, those with a remaining time of less than a month by August 15 will get 3 months of the “Ultimate” subscription. Less than 2 months will get 6 months of “Ultimate.” Less than 5 months will get 12 months. Less than ten months will get 24 months. And more than 10 months will get 36 months of “Ultimate” time.
In other news, after many months of battling, Microsoft has confirmed that Sony has agreed to a 10-year deal to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation, allowing the company to move forward with the Activision Blizzard acquisition.
Finally, Larry Hryb (Major Nelson) from Microsoft, the face of marketing for Xbox, has announced that he’s leaving the company after 20 years. According to his announcement, he has decided to take a step back and work on the next chapter of his career.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].