Even if they sell the game on Amazon, they still pay Microsoft a royalty for each game sold. Whether you want to call it a "licensing fee" or a "Microsoft tax"

Even if they sell the game on Amazon, they still pay Microsoft a royalty for each game sold. Whether you want to call it a "licensing fee" or a "Microsoft tax" seems like a matter of semantics. Also keep in mind that their publisher agreement with Microsoft gives Microsoft approval rights over the game itself, marketing materials, and even packaging. And if they sell virtual goods in the Xbox version of the game they have to go through the Xbox store and pay Microsoft 30% of that. The amount of control console manufacturers exert over the games allowed on their platform is not dissimilar to the Apple and its App Store.