Unity Software scraps 'runtime fee' pricing policy, introduces price hikes

(Reuters) - Unity Software is abandoning its "runtime fee" pricing policy, nearly a year after its announcement sparked considerable backlash from the videogame developer community.

The maker of the Unity Engine software said in a blog post on Thursday that it will revert to its "existing seat-based subscription model for all gaming customers" and implement price increases for its Unity Pro and Unity Enterprise subscriptions.

Shares of the company were up around 7% in afternoon trading.

The controversial pricing structure, announced in September last year, sought to charge new fees to game developers if certain revenue and install thresholds were met. The changes triggered a revolt among customers, hitting the company's share price and prompting it to roll back some aspects of the policy later that month.

"It's our intention to revert to a more traditional cycle of considering any potential price increases only on an annual basis," Unity CEO Matt Bromberg said in a statement.

Unity Pro will see an 8% subscription price increase, while prices for Unity Enterprise will rise by 25%. The changes will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

Following the "runtime fee" debacle, Unity announced a "company reset" cutting 3.8% of its global workforce and closing offices in 14 locations across various countries.

(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

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