Microsoft acquires live games platform provider PlayFab

Microsoft has acquired PlayFab, a backend platform provider of services to build, launch, and grow cloud-connected games.

The acquisition of PlayFab will complement Microsoft’s own cloud platform, Microsoft Azure. PlayFab’s backend services are said to reduce the barriers to launch for game developers, offering both large and small studios cost-effective development solutions that scale with their games and help them engage, retain, and monetize players. It is said to enable use of the cloud to build and operate games, analyze gaming data, and improve overall gaming experiences.

PlayFab currently powers more than 1,200 games with companies like Disney, Rovio, and Atari, including Idle Miner Tycoon, Angry Birds: Seasons, and Roller Coaster Tycoon Touch, and is being treated as an important step forward for video games at Microsoft.

Read more about PlayFab here.