Microsoft-owned Mojang Studios, the creative force behind Minecraft, is branching out into new revenue channels as the gaming industry faces slower growth. Speaking to Bloomberg, Åsa Bredin, who leads Mojang Studios, says the company is stepping into areas such as merchandising, education, and streaming content.
Venturing Beyond Traditional Gaming
Looking to extend its brand, Mojang Studios is working with various partners to strengthen its foothold in both the merchandising and educational markets. Given Minecraft’s strong fanbase among students and educators, the company aims to exploit this unique positioning. The company is also collaborating with Warner Bros. on an upcoming movie adaptation set for an April release and is developing a Netflix series.
Mojang Studios has introduced artificial intelligence to its content moderation capabilities. This new tool aims to foster a safer gaming environment by filtering inappropriate content more effectively. The AI’s role is to maintain the community standards that Minecraft has always upheld.
Strategic Partnerships in Media
To expand its reach, Mojang Studios has established media partnerships. By teaming up with Warner Bros. and Netflix, the studio plans to extend its influence beyond gaming. These partnerships are geared towards creating fresh storylines and experiences that appeal to both newcomers and long-time fans.
Minecraft is the best-selling game of all-time and perhaps the biggest gaming platform ever made. It has generated billions of dollars and continues to be a major revenue driver for Microsoft’s gaming division. Even so, Microsoft and Mojang have consistently tried to find ways to diversify Minecraft, but has largely failed outside the core game. Minecraft Education has been a success, but expansions such as Minecraft Legends and Minecraft Earth have failed.
In January, Mojang Studios and Blackbird Interactive have completed development on “Minecraft Legends,” an action-strategy spin-off of the popular Minecraft franchise. Despite efforts to engage the game’s audience through regular updates and new content, the title has not attained significant traction within the community.
Microsoft launched Minecraft Earth amid the Pokémon Go trend. However, within a few years the augmented reality game had lost steam and closed in 2021. That augmented realty gaming phase really was just that… a phase. Pokémon Go rose and fell quickly and Minecraft Earth never became a massive success despite Microsoft’s efforts. In fact, it is arguable the game arrived too late, landing three years after Pokémon Go’s initial success.
Last Updated on November 7, 2024 3:41 pm CET
