GameStop streaming console games will require surcharge - Report

GameStop purchased Spawn Labs earlier this year and confirmed plans for a console streaming service, the details of which are still taking shape. Speaking with GameIndustry.biz, senior vice president of GameStop Mike Mauler confirmed the retailer's service will require consumers to own a console version of a title to have the option to pay for streaming access.

"You would have to actually own a console and buy the game," Mauler said. "It would be an additional service that you would be able to purchase as you buy a copy of the game to play on your Xbox. So it's a win-win for everybody."

According to the report, paying a surcharge on top of an eligible game's base price would allow access to purchased console titles on tablets, mobile devices, and Internet-connected TVs. The system in place is described as "pro-console," and publisher friendly. "The biggest opportunity is that it doesn't require any work on the developers' part to do something to the game like they do for OnLive or some of the other services," said Mauler.

GameStop's console streaming service has been in various forms of beta throughout 2011 with a launch set for 2012.