NVIDIA Pulls the Plug on GeForce Partner Program

NVIDIA Gives Up on GPP

After weeks of taking hits about their controversial GeForce Partner Program, NVIDIA has now decided to officially pull the plug. In a blog post by John Teeple of GeForce Partner Marketing, the company is officially ending the program due to “rumors, conjecture and mistruths” that have went “far beyond” their intent. Teeple adds that GPP’s goals are simple: to ensure that “gamers know what they are buying and can make a clear choice”.

Although that sounds fair enough, what is not fair is the fact that the existing AIB branding seems to require GeForce exclusivity. Which is what most consumers have problems with in the first place. If that was not the case as NVIDIA claims, then why would companies like MSI and Gigabyte even go out of their way to not label “Gaming” on their existing Radeon cards? Why would ASUS create a new Arez brand separate from their Republic of Gamers gaming line if there was no pressure from NVIDIA to do so?

What Happens Now?

According to NVIDIA, they are “pulling the plug on GPP to avoid any distraction from the super exciting work we’re doing to bring amazing advances to PC gaming.” Which means officially that GPP is dead. However, many partners already have their new AMD exclusive branding on the way like with ASUS’ AREZ. For them to recall these products would be costly and they are out there already. So at least until the next generation of video cards arrive, we will most likely still see these Radeon exclusive brands separate from the established brands that are GeForce cards.

In some ways, NVIDIA already has the advantage, and they have already achieved what they originally set out to do.