Who we are and what we do

One of the questions I always get about Xsolla is, “Are you guys a payments company?” And in all honesty? Yes, we are! We handle game payments all over the world and we do it well — but that’s only a small piece of what we’re capable of. And over the last two decades, we’ve evolved into something much bigger than that. What does that mean, exactly? Think of us as a monetization partner for the gaming world. Put simply, every tool and service we create is designed to help game developers. We help them keep more of their money, we help them figure out how to engage directly with their audience, and we help them launch the most successful game possible. If you’re wondering how we’re able to do all this, let me break it down for you and explain what makes Xsolla tick. Your expert in global payments Let’s start at the beginning: payments. With 700+ payment methods, 240 alternative payment options, and 200+ regions, Xsolla has proven itself as the gaming industry’s expert in worldwide payments. Xsolla Payments not only ensures our partners can reach more players in more markets, it also helps developers build the best experience for their audience. And the combination of these always leads to one key outcome: increased revenue. But we don’t just sit back, our team’s always looking to add more. Our latest payments solution, actually, introduced Payments in Asia, which has given our partners the ability to process payments in a gaming market with 76+ million players – that’s over half of all the gamers in the world! This included digital wallets and real-time payment methods like Maya, JazzCash, Easypaisa, and PayNow, which means more players, more markets, and ultimately, more profit for our partners. This is on the heels of our Payments in Africa solution earlier this year, which opened doors to gamers in Egypt, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, and South Africa with 1Voucher, FawryPay, and mobile wallets like Airtel and Vodafone. Like I said, payments are a big part of what we do. But they’re still only the beginning, and the way we operate is probably the most important thing that makes us different. Your merchant of record The biggest reason we’re able to build services that solve the challenges developers face is because we operate as a Merchant of Record. Think of us as your back-office compliance team. Actually, as a Merchant of Record, Xsolla can handle the entire sales process on our partners’ behalf. This involves everything from selling their games in over 200 countries, making sure payments go through smoothly, handling global regulation compliance to prevent fraud, and taking care of all the taxes involved. So, what does it mean to be a Merchant of Record? Here’s how it works:

1. Xsolla is the end-recipient of the money collected from gamers.
2. Developers give us a license to handle and market their games.
3. Our team of experts handles everything from fraud protection to managing chargebacks, refunds, and tax compliance.
4. Our partnerships with payment service providers (PSPs) allow us to process and collect payments from players with ease.

By allowing us to take on all these responsibilities, developers get a chance to focus on earning more while spending less. They also get the freedom to focus on what really matters—connecting with their players and creating amazing game experiences. Most importantly? The Merchant of Record model has allowed us to expand into other avenues and offer solutions that help developers throughout every stage of their journey. The industry is changing, and we’re here for you As the gaming industry evolves, so do we. With a mission to help developers thrive, whether that’s through monetization, player engagement, or even game creation, our latest solutions are just a few ways we’re making game creation, monetization, and launching even easier. Xsolla Mobile SDK Let’s talk about mobile gaming with our most recent solution, Xsolla Mobile SDK. This tool is all about making it easier to handle payments and reach players. With Mobile SDK, accepting payments for your game is easy. First, it lets you offer game installs through APK file distribution. It also lets you offer in-game purchases from a separate website – outside of the app stores. Inside the app stores, it allows Xsolla Pay Station to be your primary option for in-store payments. Finally, SDK perfectly complements Xsolla Web Shop, offering a 360-degree approach to managing your game sales. Xsolla Web Shop We’re all about giving mobile game developers the best online shop experience. Since 2021, Xsolla Web Shop has become the go-to standard for mobile game sales, setting the bar high with over 400 direct-to-consumer online experiences. With Web Shop, we’re leading the charge with web purchase experiences specifically tailored for mobile gamers. So, what makes Xsolla Web Shop stand out? We provide developers with a full suite of tools and features to optimize revenue and boost player engagement. From seamless integration to personalized promotions, we help create immersive Web Shops that grab attention and drive success. And now, our latest tool, Instant Web Shop, makes it easier than ever for game developers to set up a fully operational online store for their mobile games. In just 24 hours, developers can launch easily customizable branded online stores fully equipped to process in-game web purchases. Not only does it help increase value and sales, it offers personalization, limited-time offers, and deep linking to become a new revenue-generating channel. Instant Web Shop isn’t the only speedy solution we’ve come up with to help developers make money quickly. We recently created a whole group of tools to tackle this. Xsolla Instant Solutions One of the coolest tools we’ve created to speed up and simplify revenue generation is Xsolla Instant Solutions — a suite of products designed to help developers quickly launch new monetization channels and attract new paying audiences. In addition to a faster onboarding process, our partners can choose: Instant Game Sales With Instant Game Sales, developers can set up a landing page and online store quickly—perfect for selling pre-orders or game keys. It’s super easy to import content directly from Steam and EGS, so you can have your store live and generate sales within 24 hours. Plus, it’s a great way to establish a store page and get the game in front of players without any fuss. Instant Launcher For developers who need a custom launcher that’s quick to set up, Instant Launcher has them covered. It’s a pre-designed app that integrates smoothly with Steam, EGS, or their own platform. They can import content directly from Steam and Epic Games Store and start distributing games without missing a beat. It’s a hassle-free way to deliver content and connect with players. Instant Cloud Gaming For developers thinking about exploring the new horizons of cloud gaming, Instant Cloud Gaming lets you set up a branded platform within 24 hours. It’s a great way for developers to expand their reach and make their games available across different platforms. With our self-serve solution, you can launch your cloud gaming platform and get your game into players' hands with minimal effort. Xsolla Backend Let’s shift focus to another critical aspect of game development: backend services. The backend is the behind-the-scenes foundation pieces that keep games running smoothly. Our recent solution, Xsolla Backend, is a new tool we created to help developers looking for ways to support their game's infrastructure. The platform provides a range of tools to keep your game running smoothly and manages everything from the game system to hosting and analytics. We built the platform around five key benefits:

1. Affordable pricing. A 5% gross sales fee keeps costs manageable.
2. Available source code. Customize your backend as you see fit.
3. Business benchmarking & monitoring: Stay on top of your game’s performance with insightful analytics.
4. Free hosting. Get your game online without worrying about hosting fees.
5. Unlimited support. We’re here to help whenever you need it.

Xsolla Backend also helps developers manage cross-platform play, which is crucial for reaching players on next-gen consoles and other devices. It streamlines the development process, helping games go to market more quickly. But the best part of Xsolla Backend? Cost-efficiency. Developers don’t have to worry about upfront costs—our backend is free to use until your game starts making money. Xsolla Mall We’ve covered game monetization, creation, and launch. Now, let’s cover our new approach to game distribution with Xsolla Mall. Xsolla Mall is a platform for creating and managing branded landing pages for games. It provides a dedicated space to showcase both full games and specific in-game content. The key advantage here? By distributing game keys and content directly through Xsolla Mall, you keep more of your revenue, cutting out any middlemen and keeping more of your profits. In addition to the Mall, developers can also leverage the Xsolla Partner Network (XPN). XPN is a powerful global network of over 127K influencers with 1.2B gamers in 130 countries, that readily enables partners to create and manage influencer programs of all sizes What makes Xsolla Mall and XPN even more powerful is when they work hand-in-hand with Xsolla Web Shop. Combined, they give you a full toolkit for selling and distributing games, and, of course, a better way to earn more revenue. Xsolla Cloud Gaming Xsolla Cloud Gaming, which lets you deliver high-quality PC and mobile game experiences directly from the cloud, adds to this mix. Thanks to our pay-as-you-go monetization model, players can enjoy your games remotely through a browser. And since this is a white-labeled solution, it’s fully customizable and can be distributed through Xsolla Mall or directly on your web shop. When paired with Xsolla Mall, XPN, and Web Shop, Xsolla Cloud Gaming becomes a powerful way to increase profits and reach players directly. As we look at all these solutions, it’s easy to see our dedication and focus to helping game developers thrive. Whether it’s through tools for managing sales, handling mobile payments, or providing robust backend services, we’re here to cover the full spectrum of needs in game development. Our goal is straightforward: we want to give developers the tools and support they need to succeed. Whether they’re creating new gaming experiences or exploring fresh ways to communicate with players, Xsolla is here to help. Our commitment to equal access At the heart of what we do, we believe in providing equal access for everyone. By empowering companies and players alike and making games available to anyone, anywhere, we’re able to do more than create tools and technology, we’re fostering creativity, innovation, and the opportunity for developers to bring their games to life.

Empowering the gaming community

Now that you know how much Xsolla is capable of, it’s easy to see how we’re more than just a payments company — we’re your go-to partner in all things game commerce (and beyond)! And by helping developers grow their businesses and tackle industry-wide challenges with straightforward solutions, we’re on a mission to make games available to everyone around the world. At this point, I’ve barely scratched the surface of all the things Xsolla can do. So if you’d like to learn more about our services, or understand more about what drives us, visit www.xsolla.com. Written & Published by: David Stelzer, President at Xsolla