Xbox and Take-Two: Asha Sharma talks of a "10-year strategic partnership", with GTA VI in the cloud as the first step

"Today marks the first step in our new 10-year strategic partnership with Take-Two." Xbox CEO Asha Sharma wrote this on X on 10 November at 4:46 p.m. Italian time, announcing that Grand Theft Auto VI is coming to Xbox Cloud Gaming. In the same message Sharma reiterated that the game is already the most pre-ordered title ever on the Microsoft Store and that, from its 19 November launch, it will also be playable via streaming on Xbox One.

Sharma did not explain what the partnership involves, and Microsoft has not published any further details. The first concrete effect is the one already announced on Xbox Wire: besides GTA VI, more Rockstar games, including Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, will come to Xbox Cloud Gaming in the coming months.

The September contract

The contractual framework emerged at the end of September. In a filing with the SEC (Form 8-K), Take-Two disclosed that on 28 September 2026 it signed a new long-term Xbox publisher licence agreement with Microsoft, effective from 17 September. The contract authorises Take-Two to develop, publish and distribute products compatible with all Xbox devices and supersedes all previous licences. Microsoft pays Take-Two the agreed wholesale price or revenue share on digital sales, approves the concept, final version and marketing materials of the games, and collects fees and royalties on physical copies manufactured. The filing does not mention a ten-year term: that detail comes only from Sharma's message.