Weekend Reading: Digital Game Distribution and Trading

In early July, the Court of the Justice of the European Union has issued a ruling which basically says that once a customer buys a piece of software, regardless of whether he does so in a store or via a website, he is entitled to then resell it without the interference of the company that originally marketed the product.

For the video game enthusiast who is fond of getting his games on such services as Steam, Gamersgate, GameStop, Xbox Live Arcade or PlayStation Network this is very good news, because it means the companies behind them can no longer claim to just sell the right to play the game and will need to create a way for the player to transfer his ownership right to another.

The decision is clear sign of progress but it will probably take some time before the various service operators manage to actually create a market for second-hand trading.

It might also have a dark downside that will affect the same players who are now happy about the possibility of reselling their vast back catalogs.

The big discounts that digital distribution services, with Steam in the lead, were able to offer were linked to the lack of an actual secondary market and to the captive audience that they had.

Once players begin selling their own titles for low or very low prices it’s unlikely that Valve or Microsoft or GameStop will try to go even lower, which will probably result in much diminished enthusiasm when it comes to summer or Christmas sales.

Trading digitally sold titles can also scare publishers enough to convince them to only deliver some of their games in packaged form, which could also push back the interest of those who have cheered the original decision of the European Court of Justice.

Via: Weekend Reading: Digital Game Distribution and Trading