Epic Games Updates Unreal Engine Usage Billing Plan for Non-Game Content Development
In a recent announcement, Epic Games revealed updates to its billing plan for the usage of its Unreal Engine game engine for non-game content development. The new terms stipulate that if the engine is used to create non-game content that directly or indirectly generates profits, users will be billed at a rate of US$1,850 per person per year.
Previously, general users and developers could freely download and use Unreal Engine to create content without incurring any charges. Only when the game content was produced and sold, and revenue exceeded a certain threshold, would a profit-sharing fee be implemented. This system allowed developers to use the engine without facing charges unless their commercial profits exceeded a specified level.
With the increasing use of Unreal Engine for film production, virtual vision application development, and artificial intelligence training, Epic Games realized the need to levy fees for non-game content creation. The annual fee of $1,850 includes access to all Unreal Engine resources, as well as Twinmotion real-time visualization tools and RealityCapture 3D modeling software. If purchased separately, Twinmotion is priced at US$445 per person per year, while RealityCapture costs US$1,250 per person per year.
However, for non-profit use by individuals, research institutions, and community organizations, Unreal Engine will continue to be provided for free, along with Twinmotion and RealityCapture. For game developers, commercial revenue generated from game content creation using Unreal Engine will only be subject to a profit-sharing fee if it exceeds US$1 million, with 5% of the total revenue being charged.
Epic Games aims to make its Unreal Engine technical resources accessible to more users while preventing misuse of the platform by non-game developers looking to profit from their creations. These updates to the billing plan are designed to ensure a fair and sustainable model for all users of Unreal Engine.