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Microsoft nixes fees on developers to patch Xbox 360 games -- report

The company previously charged developers thousands of dollars to patch their titles, according to Eurogamer.

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CNET contributor Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has covered everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Besides his work with CNET, Don's work has been featured in a variety of other publications including PC World and a host of Ziff-Davis publications.
Don Reisinger
Microsoft

Microsoft has put an end to fees it was charging developers who wanted to patch their Xbox 360 games, according to a new report.

Microsoft no longer charges Xbox 360 developers of both Xbox Live Arcade titles and full retail games to send out updates, game news/reviews site Eurogamer reported Thursday, citing multiple sources who claim to have knowledge of the move. The Xbox maker used to allow developers to update a title once for free and then charged them thousands of dollars for subsequent patches, according to Eurogamer's sources.

According to Eurogamer, Microsoft actually changed its policy earlier this year but didn't announce it publicly. The idea behind the charge was to ensure developers were delivering a solid product to gamers. To keep that in place, Eurogamer's sources said that Microsoft still reserves the right to charge developers who excessively update titles.

It's not clear what Microsoft's policy will be on the upcoming Xbox One.