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.
