PlayStation was, for the longest time, not a fan of cross-play. The platform limits interaction with other console platforms- so there was a time where PS4-PC was the only cross-play method. Until Fortnite tore up the walls in late 2018.
The makers of Fortnite, Epic Games, is currently involved with a court case against Apple right now. And as such, many previously classified information has now been revealed. Including how Epic got Sony to agree to add in cross-play.
The report by The Verge revealed an email from Epic Games VP of business development, Joe Kreiner, to Sony from 2018 about making deals to get Fortnite cross-play support on PS4. The proposed deals include E3 presence branding, data sharing, PS Plus offers, better Unreal Engine 4 license deals letting Sony announce the cross-play support, “Epic goes out its way to make Sony look like heroes.”
Such proposals didn’t convince Sony, however. Even if Fortnite was making big money on PlayStation, then senior director of developer relations and Sony, Gio Corsi, said that “cross-platform play is not a slam dunk no matter the size of the title.” He further adds that “many companies are exploring this idea and not a single one can explain how cross-console play improves the PlayStation business.”
Another document, from August 2019 (after PlayStation okays Fortnite cross-play) reveals what made Sony convinced of putting in cross-play. It’s a policy called Cross-Platform Revenue Share.
This requires game publishers that has cross-play on to pay to Sony a royalty should the revenue from PlayStation players spending their money on other platforms drop to a certain percentage. It’s a way for Sony to “offset the reduction in revenue” from cross-play.
In a testimony, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney explained how this works. “In certain circumstances, Epic will have to pay additional revenue to Sony,” said Sweeny. “If somebody were primarily playing on PlayStation, but paying on iPhone then this might trigger compensation.”
In other words, if more PS4 players bought items and such for games like Fortnite but not through PlayStation Store, should it drop too low, Sony gets a royalty from publishers to compensate the loss of money.
Also, Sony requires publishers to not make their virtual currency transferable to other platforms, as well as a setting to disable cross-play.
It’s one of many fascinating reveals from the ongoing Epic Games v. Apple case. There have also been new details of how much Epic spent money on getting the weekly free games deal for the Epic Games Store, as well as how much some of the Epic Games Store exclusivity deals cost.
Expect even more juicer details to be revealed as the court case continues.
Source: The Verge