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Google deserves credit for how they have been handling the Stadia shut down IMHO.

harrego 4y ago
I think the team over there are proud of what they built, was a lot of new ground so I don't blame them.
oritsnile 4y ago
For sure, I've back the money for my Chromecast+stadia controller a month ago, whit this update both will still be useful, after the shutdown.
delecti 4y ago
It makes me wonder if the higherups are using this to counteract the worries that google will shut things down. I'd be less hesitant to invest in their services for fear of them shutting down if I thought I'd get my money back if they did.
- permo-w 4y ago
  I suspect they’re trying to avoid a class-action lawsuit. sunsetting software is one thing: it’s not so tangible and software licenses are legally slippery. but when hardware’s involved, you’re on much shakier ground this idea that its to encourage future investment is predicated on Google thinking that the masses are paying attention to their refund policies. yes this kind of thing may be a big deal for people on HN or certain subreddits, but I doubt it’s a large % of the target market
  - delecti 4y ago
    There are lots of examples of support for hardware being dropped, the IoT space is full of it, likewise with non IoT devices, and I can't think of any examples of a company getting heat for it. And google is very aware that their reputation for killing products hurts adoption of new launches. https://www.itpro.com/software/360376/google-cloud-seeks-to-turn-around-its-killed-by-google-reputation https://www.itpro.com/software/360376/google-cloud-seeks-to-... (just one of many results, just happened to be the top result for "google kills things reputation")
    - permo-w 4y ago
      perhaps I am underestimating how much Google takes that reputation into account, but I do still doubt there are many examples of a company with as many bags of cash as Google deprecating $50+ hardware that can only be used with its software, without offering a replacement product or service
freewizard 4y ago
Agreed. a lot of product sun-setting from Google and other corp in this tech winter. Stadia is definitely handled in the best way one could hope for, IMHO it should be a text book example: - refund the purchase - listen to the user community, and act on it to avoid creating e-waste - respect the employees and give them an opportunity to express their love of their work openly and officially
mccorrinall 4y ago
The current handling is what I’d like to call a Selbstverständlichkeit.
sjs382 4y ago
So much. It's almost unbelievable. I never thought they eould have dedicated the resources to getting Bluetooth working (and possibly dealing with licensing/testing, since Bluetooth was never enabled in the first place—just BKE for initial setup)
dragonwriter 4y ago
> Google deserves credit for how they have been handling the Stadia shut down IMHO If Google had been as good at marketing Stadia as managing its shutdown, they never would have had to manage its shutdown. Honestly, I think if they had been really smart, they would’ve made the game streaming a Youtube feature (including rolling the subscription benefits into YT Red. It would have been consistent with the way they’ve converged what used to be Google Play Music, and the way they’ve soft-converged Google Play Music and TV with Youtube.) It’s
- Macha 4y ago
  In my opinion it's not a marketing failure. The combination of paying full price for games that require the service combined with Google's reputation for killing services left it pretty stillborn. I think Google may have realised this which is why they're carefully managing the shutdown. It was too late for Stadia, but they don't want consumers feeling the next service is risky too by showing an intent to make it right when the shutdown happens
  - dragonwriter 4y ago
    “It’s not a marketing failure” and blaming it on perceived vulnerability to cancelation of the service are mutually contradictory claims.
    - paledot 4y ago
      On some level maybe, but at this point no amount of marketing is going to change Google's reputation.
    - dns_snek 4y ago
      I disagree. Everyone that I know who has even the slightest interest in video games has heard about Stadia. They can't market their way out of the public perception around Google's long term commitments, nor can they change the laws of physics to eliminate input lag, nor can their marketing change the perception that paying full sticker price for games only accessible through their walled garden streaming service was a terrible deal. They likely would have gained more popularity had they promised to refund all purchases in case the project shut down in less than a decade - in a legally binding way. This would have given customers a lot of confidence to invest time and money into their platform. Additionally, they could have pulled in a portion of the existing PC gaming market if they allowed users to bring their own games. Having a service that would allow you to play your existing library while you're traveling or over at a friend's house would be enticing to many. I wouldn't call this a marketing failure, however.

I think the team over there are proud of what they built, was a lot of new ground so I don't blame them.

For sure, I've back the money for my Chromecast+stadia controller a month ago, whit this update both will still be useful, after the shutdown.

delecti 4y ago

It makes me wonder if the higherups are using this to counteract the worries that google will shut things down. I'd be less hesitant to invest in their services for fear of them shutting down if I thought I'd get my money back if they did.

permo-w 4y ago
I suspect they’re trying to avoid a class-action lawsuit. sunsetting software is one thing: it’s not so tangible and software licenses are legally slippery. but when hardware’s involved, you’re on much shakier ground this idea that its to encourage future investment is predicated on Google thinking that the masses are paying attention to their refund policies. yes this kind of thing may be a big deal for people on HN or certain subreddits, but I doubt it’s a large % of the target market
- delecti 4y ago
  There are lots of examples of support for hardware being dropped, the IoT space is full of it, likewise with non IoT devices, and I can't think of any examples of a company getting heat for it. And google is very aware that their reputation for killing products hurts adoption of new launches. https://www.itpro.com/software/360376/google-cloud-seeks-to-turn-around-its-killed-by-google-reputation https://www.itpro.com/software/360376/google-cloud-seeks-to-... (just one of many results, just happened to be the top result for "google kills things reputation")
  - permo-w 4y ago
    perhaps I am underestimating how much Google takes that reputation into account, but I do still doubt there are many examples of a company with as many bags of cash as Google deprecating $50+ hardware that can only be used with its software, without offering a replacement product or service

freewizard 4y ago

Agreed. a lot of product sun-setting from Google and other corp in this tech winter. Stadia is definitely handled in the best way one could hope for, IMHO it should be a text book example: - refund the purchase - listen to the user community, and act on it to avoid creating e-waste - respect the employees and give them an opportunity to express their love of their work openly and officially

mccorrinall 4y ago

The current handling is what I’d like to call a Selbstverständlichkeit.

sjs382 4y ago

So much. It's almost unbelievable. I never thought they eould have dedicated the resources to getting Bluetooth working (and possibly dealing with licensing/testing, since Bluetooth was never enabled in the first place—just BKE for initial setup)

dragonwriter 4y ago

> Google deserves credit for how they have been handling the Stadia shut down IMHO If Google had been as good at marketing Stadia as managing its shutdown, they never would have had to manage its shutdown. Honestly, I think if they had been really smart, they would’ve made the game streaming a Youtube feature (including rolling the subscription benefits into YT Red. It would have been consistent with the way they’ve converged what used to be Google Play Music, and the way they’ve soft-converged Google Play Music and TV with Youtube.) It’s

Macha 4y ago
In my opinion it's not a marketing failure. The combination of paying full price for games that require the service combined with Google's reputation for killing services left it pretty stillborn. I think Google may have realised this which is why they're carefully managing the shutdown. It was too late for Stadia, but they don't want consumers feeling the next service is risky too by showing an intent to make it right when the shutdown happens
- dragonwriter 4y ago
  “It’s not a marketing failure” and blaming it on perceived vulnerability to cancelation of the service are mutually contradictory claims.
  - paledot 4y ago
    On some level maybe, but at this point no amount of marketing is going to change Google's reputation.
  - dns_snek 4y ago
    I disagree. Everyone that I know who has even the slightest interest in video games has heard about Stadia. They can't market their way out of the public perception around Google's long term commitments, nor can they change the laws of physics to eliminate input lag, nor can their marketing change the perception that paying full sticker price for games only accessible through their walled garden streaming service was a terrible deal. They likely would have gained more popularity had they promised to refund all purchases in case the project shut down in less than a decade - in a legally binding way. This would have given customers a lot of confidence to invest time and money into their platform. Additionally, they could have pulled in a portion of the existing PC gaming market if they allowed users to bring their own games. Having a service that would allow you to play your existing library while you're traveling or over at a friend's house would be enticing to many. I wouldn't call this a marketing failure, however.