As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and Nvidia’s GeForce Now game streaming service is no exception. However, the end in this case isn’t the shutdown of the service but rather the end of an era where its free tier remained ad-free. Despite its recent successes, including the addition of highly sought-after titles like Nightingale and classic Activision-Blizzard games such as Diablo IV and Overwatch, GeForce Now is now joining the ranks of services that monetize through advertisements.
Soon, users on the free tier of GeForce Now will encounter video advertisements while waiting for an available slot on an Nvidia remote server. These ads, limited to two minutes, will not disrupt gameplay but will play during the queue time. However, users on the free tier are already constrained by a one-hour playtime limit before being bumped off to make room for paying customers, necessitating a return to the server queue.
While advertisements are a ubiquitous aspect of the online experience, their infiltration into services that previously operated without them can be irksome. From Amazon inserting ads into Prime Video to Google monetizing every corner of YouTube, the encroachment of advertisements into once-ad-free spaces is becoming increasingly common. This trend is particularly frustrating when observed in companies with substantial revenue streams, such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google.
Nvidia, a company riding high on the waves of cryptocurrency and AI investment, boasts enormous profits and valuation. Yet, its decision to introduce ads into the previously ad-free tier of GeForce Now, coupled with recent price hikes in many markets, has left some users feeling disillusioned. The move appears more about nudging users towards the paid tiers, starting at $10 a month, rather than a necessity driven by financial struggles.
