Kotku: Retailers Can Charge Whatever For Used Xbox One Games

According to "retail sources", trade publication MCV is reporting that stores will be able to sell Xbox One games for whatever price they want.

The catch? Both Microsoft and the game's publisher will get a percentage of that sale.

Kotaku: Report: Retailers Can Charge Whatever For Used Xbox One Games

Huh. Just: .. Huh. I mean, I don't think retailers are that stupid enough to charge $55, right?. Final Fantasy XV is totally worth that.

I wonder. Like well, does Best Buy still do used games? And Wal-Mart? Like, the only place I could think of this affecting is like GameStop. And whatever else world-wide.. Because,. I mean If they had the money, could like a pawn shop also register with Microsoft to get the software and stuff to wipe your account from the disc? Or whatever they do.

Interesting..

Probably the best explanation in Video form.

I don't have the faintest idea what this sentence means.

That said, this more or less reconciles all of the conflicting reports and is exactly what I expected it to be. The implication, then, is that the only way for people to sell their games used is with GameStop (et al) as a middleman. No more eBay. No more craigslist. No more straight up swappin'. This will also result in a decrease in trade-in value, as I'm sure retailers aren't going to want to take eat that re-licensing fee by themselves.

Is Kotku anything like Hawktaku?

@bacongames: It didn't fit.. So yes.

Based on what's been reported so far, that's not the case. A license can still be transferred by interting the disc into your console and paying whatever the fee ends up being. After that, the previous owner can no longer play the game unless they pay for a new license. What retailers get is the ability to (for a fee) reset the license, ie. make it so that the license stored on the disc is no longer associated with any console. The previous owner can no longer play the game, but the new owner will not be prompted to pay the transfer fee when intering the disc into their console.

It'll be interesting to see how the disc ID is implemented (since every physical disc ever made needs to be uniquely identified), and what kind of attacks will be attempted. I assume the cheapest way would be to laser-cut the ID onto the pressed discs, but it must be encoded in some way that is very difficult to falsify.

Kotaku. Kotatsu. Kotku.

@funkasaurasrex: Big Bro, can we pull out the kotaku now that it's winter?

I don't want to buy used games. The idea I've heard floated of getting a partial refund on a desync/tradein from MS/Sony/Steam has some merit to it though.

@bigjeffrey: The way they describe it in that video doesn't seem so bad. If they can find a way to spilt the proceeds of a re-sale between developer, publisher and re-seller it might mean that used sales can remain with everyone getting a piece of the pie. Gamestop, or CEX over here in the UK, won't be able to raise prices that much because no-one will buy them otherwise.

It is going to be very interesting to see what shakes out of this debate. I really don't think it is an area where Microsoft can afford to look, or be, anti-consumer, or over protective because this console race is just so vital and close-fought. Anyone looking like they are punishing consumers is going to be in danger of losing sales.

EDIT: Didn't stop to think how this would kill any chance of selling on ebay or direct to a friend. Hmmmmmm, now not so keen.

This seems like a terrible deal for the local game store I shop at. Maybe if you're selling used games at the scale of Gamestop it works out, but when you have two locations total it's not like you're gonna be able to eat it on profit like Gamestop could.

@bigjeffrey: Great video. I'm not angry at all so I resent their guiding morons to complain about it; but granted I won't actually buy an XBone barring the best game ever made comes out for it exclusively. Death to Gamestop!