NVIDIA has canceled the sale and renewal of licenses for its cloud gaming software, and customers are feeling the impact. Prices for these services have already begun to rise as the market adjusts to the licensing pause. Vitaly Starodubov, founder of Loudplay, spoke to media outlets about the situation, noting that the disruption extends beyond a simple price change. Additionally, NVIDIA has removed listings and links to Russian partners from its official site, signaling a broader pullback that could affect local distribution and support networks.
For operators that rely heavily on the NVIDIA Grid system, the licensing halt translates into noticeably higher operating costs. In the past, a single server equipped with two NVIDIA Grid cards could support eight players simultaneously. That same setup can now handle only two players at once, reducing the efficiency of a given server and forcing providers to rework capacity planning. Vitaly Starodubov commented on how this shift compresses the throughput of typical cloud gaming configurations and compellingly argues for a reassessment of how users experience latency and performance under tighter resource constraints.
On the pricing front, observers have noted tangible changes. The cloud gaming service GFN.ru has already increased its price from 999 rubles to 1,400 rubles per month, reflecting the broader trend in the Russian market as operators seek to preserve margins amid rising costs. Meanwhile, the same technology stack powers My Game Cloud, a service within VK, which suggests that multiple platforms are navigating the licensing change in parallel, potentially leading to harmonized pricing across related services.
The licensing pause could also complicate operations for major AI-centric computing efforts. Companies such as Yandex, Sberbank, and MTS rely on high-end GPUs like the A100 and DGX-2 for artificial intelligence workloads. While no existing licenses have been blocked yet, the uncertainty surrounding future licenses may influence planning, procurement strategies, and the timing of deployments for advanced AI projects.
Market observers note that many Russians have already integrated cloud gaming into everyday tech use, signaling a shift in consumer behavior that could outlast the licensing disruption. In this evolving landscape, users and providers alike will likely look for stable licensing models and clear timelines to minimize disruption and maintain confidence in cloud gaming as a viable entertainment option.