In news that is sure to make a number of publishers vomit into their hands, it's being estimated that the number of used games being traded in the US has reached 100 million a year. That equals a revenue stream worth $2 billion, according to the chaps at Wedbush Morgan.
It's not all bad for the industry, however, as it's theorized that only 5% of new game sales are affected by the second-hand market, and the trading in of old games could always lead to new games being bought. The latter is a Captain Obvious, but it's something publishers easily forget when they moan about used games.
"The vast majority of used games are not traded in until the original new game purchaser has finished playing -- more than two months after a new game is released -- typically well beyond the window for a full retail priced new game sale," said good ol' Michael Pachter.
Big publishers would like us to believe that used games are killing them, but they conveniently forget that they're still raking in millions of dollars from new games, and that all those used games being bought had to have been purchased brand new in the first place. Still, they'll keep acting like victims and keep treating consumers like evil rapists, helping to breed great customer relations.
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
8:40 AM on 06.30.2009
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Your salty tears sustain me.
EVIL?!
Welcome to deflation, people.
Yeah, we are alledgedly loosing money from second hand sales. Whatever...cry me a river and get out of my courtroom. You don't see or hear other industries complaining about second hand goods. People have the right to sell something they don't want any more.
If the industry were really bothered about losing money, they all be backing Goozex/Ebay, since it cuts out the middleman. But alas, no.
Does the industry really expect everybody to hang onto every game they've ever bought? When people are done with a game and they know they'll never play it again, I don't see anything wrong with trading it in. They purchased the game, they don't want it anymore, they trade it back for less money. Isn't the video game business the most profitable industry out there nowadays? These executives need to be realistic and realize that people aren't going to keep their games forever if they don't ever play them, and that people don't want to pay $60 for every game they buy.
The day will come when you can sell ethereal games over the magic that is the internet and they will exist only as a footprint on someone's bagigabyte hard drive and can never be sold to an evil revenue dodging third party. If when this day comes, you are still charging $60 a game, you can 'go fuck yourself'.