Since 2009 a couple of services (primarily OnLive and Gaikai) have launched which provide streamed games to players either through a dedicated console device or a PC client. The games are hosted and run on a network of cloud servers, unlike a downloaded game, so there is no need for installation of software or costly hardware.
Cloud gaming has many proponents who see it as the future, but also many detractors concerned with performance and the physical constants (such as the speed of light and decryption of video content) that playing via a cloud server needs to overcome.
