While Microsoft is suffering under an onslaught of backlash, even after releasing more specifics about the Xbox One, there is one company that seems to be doing surprisingly well.
GameStop.
The used game seller’s stock has climbed more than 7% in the wake of Microsoft’s newest announcements, and as of this morning is trading at over $37.10. Microsoft’s announcement that only certain retailers would be allowed to sell used Xbox One games, as well as informing the public that the DRM would be publisher specific, seems to have been an overall positive for the retailer.
The only publisher that has directly commented on this latest information is Bethesda, who has said that they “haven’t had time to fully understand and evaluate their policy.” It does seem unlikely that many companies will take Microsoft up on this “used game” debacle, especially with the excessive backlash that seems to be taking place in the gaming community as a whole.
If there is a company that is likely to take it up, it would probably be EA. The retailer has recently scaled back their own DRM practices, and it is reasonable to speculate that the reason could be that the console would do it for them.
Published: Jun 7, 2013 11:21 am