Yannis Mallat says consoles with network requirement need to provide “clear benefits” if gamers are to adopt them.

Ubisoft Montreal CEO Yannis Mallat has weighed in on the possibility of an always-online requirement for next-generation platforms. Speaking The Guardian (via Game Informer), Mallat said he believes most gamers are already prepared for such a mandate.

“Well, that’s a question you should put to Microsoft and Sony! I would say that a lot of people are already always online through other devices,” Mallat said. “I would suspect that the audience is ready.”

The executive added that if an always-online console hopes to see mass adoption, it must “provide clear benefits” for such a requirement, like extra content or featured services.

Microsoft’s Xbox 720 is rumored to require an Internet connection—and a Kinect unit–to function. If a network signal drops for three minutes, any running applications or games will cease to work, according to a past report.

Earlier this month, Microsoft creative director Adam Orth made headlines after saying, “Sorry, I don’t get the drama around having an ‘always on’ console. Every device now is ‘always on’. That’s the world we live in.” He then used the hashtag “#dealwithit.” He is no longer with Microsoft.

Microsoft has not commented at all on plans for a future platform, though multiple reports have indicated the company will announce the next Xbox on May 21.

The PlayStation 4 does not require an Internet connection. No console in history ever has.

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