GameStop details three-point plan for digital distro future

by David Hinkle on Oct 22nd 2009 10:00PM

GameStop doesn't really have to worry about digital distribution devices like the PSP Go right now -- in the Go's case, it's because there's pretty much nothing on it -- but, in the future, the company may need to consider adapting to a less physical media-dependent market. Though some say that day won't come until 2017 (others say digital distribution will endanger the company), Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian recently attended an analyst-only GameStop meeting at the NYSE (via IndustryGamers) where the company actually detailed its plans to prepare for the rise of ~~the machines~~ digital distribution.

GameStop's three main goals to adapt included increasing in-store sales of point cards for online purchases, expanding its digital distribution of PC and casual titles via its website and making a strategic investment in the space or acquiring an online entity specializing in digital distribution. The first two are pretty cut and dry, but that last item really gives one food for thought.

There are certainly a plethora of online distributors that GameStop could own; Steam, Greenhouse, Impulse, GoG and Direct2Drive are all established and popular digital distribution services, though we think GameStop may have some trouble should it pursue Steam or Direct2Drive -- which are owned by Valve and IGN (News Corp.), respectively. And, hey, if GameStop decides to purchase any one of these and doesn't like it, there's always the option to trade it back in for ... ah, forget it.

Source

Tags: colin-sebastian, digital-distribution, direct2drive, gamestop, gog, gog.com, greenhouse, impulse, lazard-capital-markets, steam, valve

Reader Comments (52)

"in the Go's case, it's because there's pretty much nothing on it"

So we're all just gonna let that one go right? I'm sorry, I'm not a big fan of the Go (based on price and screen size) but saying there's pretty much nothing on it is a load.

I just checked the PlayStation Store and this is what's currently available:
- 196 Full PSP Game Downloads
- 16 "PSN Exclusive Games"
- 69 PSOne Classics
- 9 "minis"
and more from the PSP back catalog get added every week.

290 games currently available for a system that's been out a few short weeks. Name another console that had 290 games available within weeks of launch.

I guess I can chalk this up to the standard "we're a gaming blog and hating on the PSP Go is all the rage". You do it without even thinking and you do it with no facts to back it up.

Well done Joystiq. Keep those standards high!

I don't see how they are going to be able to stand-up to the console market changes when the makers finish their migration to digital downloads. The vast majority of people will not take the convenience of downloading and then add a step of going to the store to get a DL card when they could have directly done so at home.

Granted, many of us rather have discs, but we are going to buy what is offered in the end and if the consoles go all digital DL, we will be buying our games that way. Hell, the console makers have dictated other expenses and changes that people resisted to no avail.

I just don't think GameStop will be able to stay afloat after a few years of new games being digital. They will have to get most of their business through older console games and PC, and that just isn't big enough for all the stores they have depending on sales.

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