cover of episode Should Google Stay in the Cloud Gaming Business?

Should Google Stay in the Cloud Gaming Business?

2025/2/18
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Cold Call

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Akshat Agrawal
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Derek Van Bever
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Derek Van Bever: 我认为Google Stadia的核心问题在于公司能力,即公司能够胜任某些事而不能胜任其他事。这与公司的资源、流程和优先级(RPPs)有关。一个像Google这样每年研发投入450亿美元的公司,怎么会做不好任何事呢?这正是我们讨论的重点。在课堂上,我会首先问:Stadia是一个好主意还是坏主意?不针对Google,而是就其本身而言。这给了课堂上的游戏玩家们一个机会来谈论他们在游戏生活中认为重要的东西。然后我们会继续讨论:不管你是否认为云游戏是一个好主意,对Google来说,它是一个好主意还是坏主意?然后我们就开始讨论了。 Stadia面临的挑战包括:游戏行业是“爆款”行业,Google缺乏游戏发行经验;其商业模式混乱;用户群体细分不明确。Google应该更谦逊,更耐心,从低端市场开始,逐步进入高端市场。 Akshat Agrawal: 游戏产业是娱乐和媒体产业中最大的一个部门,主要参与者包括索尼、微软、任天堂、谷歌和苹果等。Stadia的技术创新在于利用Google在流媒体方面的深厚专业知识(源于YouTube)和边缘网络技术,从而降低延迟,提升游戏体验。游戏玩家非常重视游戏性能,对游戏平台有很强的忠诚度,不容易轻易转换平台。游戏市场可以细分为核心玩家和休闲玩家两大类,他们的需求和消费习惯不同。Stadia最初的目标是与Xbox和PlayStation等竞争高端核心玩家市场,但其竞争对手推出了更高性能的新一代游戏主机,使Stadia处于劣势。Stadia的定价模式与Xbox和PlayStation相比,存在优势和劣势,这取决于目标用户群体。Stadia的基础设施投资使其能够提供独特的跨平台游戏体验,但并未在高端核心玩家市场获得显著竞争优势。高端玩家更关注游戏性能,而并非游戏平台的便利性或成本。Google应该专注于休闲玩家市场,利用其在广告和移动游戏领域的优势,这更符合公司的能力和资源。进入云游戏业务的关键在于不仅要拥有先进的技术,还要制定正确的产品定位和战略,了解目标用户的需求。

Deep Dive

Chapters
This chapter explores the central issue of Google Stadia's success or failure, examining whether cloud gaming is a viable concept and if it's a suitable venture for Google, considering their resources and capabilities.
  • Discussion on the viability of cloud gaming as a whole.
  • Initial question posed: Is Stadia a good idea in general, and then specifically for Google?

Shownotes Transcript

Google formally announced the innovative video game service Stadia at the 2019 Game Developer Conference. The company invested substantial resources and time into building a network able to support the demanding requirements of cloud gaming. But the early uptake by premium video gamers was disappointing.

The leadership team faced a decision. Should they double down on the streaming strategy, refocusing Stadia on the casual gamer segment? Or should they pull the plug altogether?

In this episode, Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer Derek van Bever and coauthor Akshat Agrawal explore Google’s strategic choice, which is featured in their case “Google Stadia: Game On or Game Over?)”