Microsoft has just canceled a number of Xbox Game Pass subscriptions in light of fraudulent resellers. The monthly Xbox gaming subscription service has gained a great deal of popularity since it first went live back in 2017, allowing players access to a vast library of Xbox Game Pass titles for a small fee. These games run the gamut between indie gems and AAA blockbusters, with new titles and bonus offers from services like Disney Plus and Crunchyroll being added to Xbox Game Pass every month.
The latest round of new Xbox Game Pass titles was just announced last week and includes options like Far Cry 5 and Naraka: Bladepoint. The ability to play and stream titles like Fortnite on mobile devices through Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming technology has added to Xbox Game Pass’s appeal in recent months, and the company has reported the service has roughly 25 million subscribers as of April. Xbox Game Pass’s apparent success has prompted rival Sony to revamp its own PlayStation Plus service to better compete with Microsoft’s subscription-based offerings, but it seems that not every Xbox Game Pass membership has been genuine.
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced Xbox has uncovered a fraudulent group of resellers who have been stacking multiple instances of Xbox Game Pass’s standard introductory subscription offer and converting them to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate tier - which gives members access to additional features and services like EA Play, and the aforementioned Xbox Cloud Gaming, for a slightly higher monthly cost. As a reaction to this wave of fraud, Microsoft has decided to shut down all related Xbox Game Pass subscriptions after notifying the users they were assigned to. All account data and game history connected to these subscriptions have been preserved, and impacted users can resubscribe by signing up on the official Xbox Game Pass website or verified third-party sellers.
Frauds and scams are sadly nothing new in the gaming industry, with such unsavory actions seemingly increasing with the advent of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles over the past few years. With supplies running low in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, opportunistic scalpers have used bots to purchase a retailer’s entire shipment of consoles as quickly as they arrive, reselling them at inflated prices. Thankfully, outlets like GameStop and Wal-Mart have taken steps to combat these practices in the last couple of years, but they remain a constant annoyance for players who wish to acquire their new consoles through legitimate means.
Likewise, it appears some Xbox Game Pass subscribers have attempted to access Game Pass’s Ultimate tier by way of these fraudulent subscriptions - though Microsoft insists only a small portion of Xbox Game Pass’s ever-growing member base has been affected. Regardless, any Xbox Game Pass subscribers who receive a message from Microsoft will have to reactivate their accounts through Xbox Game Pass to continue enjoying everything the subscription service has to offer.
Source: Microsoft.com