Physical retail stores are dying. Gamestop closing approx 225 stores worldwide.

[AlTech]

Gamestop has experienced a reduced year over year sales of around 13% compared to the same time last year.

 

Gamestop has decided to close approximately 225 retail stores worldwide which equates to roughly 2-3% of their stores worldwide.

 

I agree with ReviewTechUSA's interpretation that this is due to digital downloads becoming more mainstream.

 

Source:

 

Frankly, if a retailer wants to sell me a product in a physical store then it needs to be something I can't get anywhere else for cheaper or something that I can't get anywhere else, period.

I'd recommend retailers to develop their own brand signature product so that customers have a reason to come back to that store.

[ProjectBox153]

I don't go to stores like GameStop because I can get the same items for a lot cheaper online. I don't know why the stores have such high markups on things. 

[AlTech]

Just now, Jamiec1130 said:

I don't go to stores like GameStop because I can get the same items for a lot cheaper online.

Yes but I think there should be more competition in the online distribution/retailer market.

 

I think that more companies need to compete with Valve's Steam platform.

Just now, Jamiec1130 said:

I don't know why the stores have such high markups on things. 

I do, they want to make lots of profit.

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, AluminiumTech said:

Gamestop has experienced a reduced year over year sales of around 13% compared to the same time last year.

 

Gamestop has decided to close approximately 225 retail stores worldwide which equates to roughly 2-3% of their stores worldwide.

 

I agree with ReviewTechUSA's interpretation that this is due to digital downloads becoming more mainstream.

 

Source:

 

Frankly, if a retailer wants to sell me a product in a physical store then it needs to be something I can't get anywhere else for cheaper or something that I can't get anywhere else.

I'd recommend retailers to develop their own brand signature product so that customers have a reason to come back to that store.

NOOOOOO! Does that mean VHS is dead?

[AG1233]

For consoles I would anyday choose Physical over digital.There's something about having a physical collection which IMO digital cant ever compete.

[ProjectBox153]

Just now, Factory OC said:

NOOOOOO! Does that mean VHS is dead?

Sorry to burst your bubble, but VHS has been dead. I still use VHS, but it's been dead. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Jamiec1130 said:

Sorry to burst your bubble, but VHS has been dead. I still use VHS, but it's been dead. 

Damm, guess I'll have to move on...

7 minutes ago, AluminiumTech said:

Gamestop has experienced a reduced year over year sales of around 13% compared to the same time last year.

 

Gamestop has decided to close approximately 225 retail stores worldwide which equates to roughly 2-3% of their stores worldwide.

 

I agree with ReviewTechUSA's interpretation that this is due to digital downloads becoming more mainstream.

 

Source:

 

Frankly, if a retailer wants to sell me a product in a physical store then it needs to be something I can't get anywhere else for cheaper or something that I can't get anywhere else.

I'd recommend retailers to develop their own brand signature product so that customers have a reason to come back to that store.

Blockbuster story...

[AlTech]

Just now, Jamiec1130 said:

Sorry to burst your bubble, but VHS has been dead. I still use VHS, but it's been dead. 

I think it's really really quite dead.....

 

Like we've beaten this horse way past it's death........

[Guest]

I like physical better. I also think its the growth of PC.

[Dabombinable]

Well, most of their profit is from the used game/console market....

[ProjectBox153]

Just now, AluminiumTech said:

I think it's really really quite dead.....

 

Like we've beaten this horse way past it's death........

Just wondering, was there ever a VCR unit that would fit into a PC case? Like an optical drive (or tape for this matter)?

[Princess Luna]

I don't even have CD/DVD driver any more on my new rig, everything is downloaded already... Frankly the other day I was thinking, I know that cds and dvds are extremely cheap thus why they are used but wouldn't it be possible to migrate from those to some cheap usb solution?

 

Like when I received my monitor it came with a cd for the drivers, I don't have a cd drive any more on the desktop, I put it on a laptop which does and copied the content to a pen drive and then used it on the desktop; made me think couldn't OEM's start making a very crappy cheap 2.0 usb drive to host the games and programs? it could be somewhat more appealing.

 

Regardless I don't think that physical shops have a future any more... at best consoles will have those staying around since the storage solution on those is worse and having the entire game on a disc still helps.

[ProjectBox153]

Just now, Princess Cadence said:

I don't even have CD/DVD driver any more on my new rig, everything is downloaded already... Frankly the other day I was thinking, I know that cds and dvds are extremely cheap thus why they are used but wouldn't it be possible to migrate from those to some cheap usb solution?

 

Like when I received my monitor it came with a cd for the drivers, I don't have a cd drive any more on the desktop, I put it on a laptop which does and copied the content to a pen drive and then used it on the desktop; made me think couldn't OEM's start making a very crappy cheap 2.0 usb drive to host the games and programs? it could be somewhat more appealing.

 

Regardless I don't think that physical shops have a future any more... at best consoles will have those staying around since the storage solution on those is worse and having the entire game on a disc still helps.

I have optical drives EVERYWHERE! I love them. 

[Guest Kloaked]

If they actually sold PC stuff I'd go more. I've been in there a couple times recently and they have zero PC stuff anymore.

[AlTech]

Another video which really explains things....

 

 

[AG1233]

7 minutes ago, Princess Cadence said:

I don't even have CD/DVD driver any more on my new rig, everything is downloaded already... Frankly the other day I was thinking, I know that cds and dvds are extremely cheap thus why they are used but wouldn't it be possible to migrate from those to some cheap usb solution?

 

Like when I received my monitor it came with a cd for the drivers, I don't have a cd drive any more on the desktop, I put it on a laptop which does and copied the content to a pen drive and then used it on the desktop; made me think couldn't OEM's start making a very crappy cheap 2.0 usb drive to host the games and programs? it could be somewhat more appealing.

Like what Microsoft does for windows 10? It would be nice if other people could shift to usb drives as well compared to CD.

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, Jamiec1130 said:

Just wondering, was there ever a VCR unit that would fit into a PC case? Like an optical drive (or tape for this matter)?

Nope, not really...

THAT WOULD BE COOL TO SEE

[Guest]

Just now, AG1233 said:

Like what Microsoft does that for windows 10? It would be nice if other people could shift to usb drives as well compared to CD.

Oh gosh, I have had lots of trouble installing Windows 10 from a burned disk...

[Teddy07]

I try to buy as much as I can online. I basically only buy groceries in the supermarket and that´s it.

[Princess Luna]

6 minutes ago, AG1233 said:

Like what Microsoft does for windows 10? It would be nice if other people could shift to usb drives as well compared to CD.

Exactly,it would certainly be a plus if usb was the new full standard... I mean you can find usb wifi adapters for 2 dollars on ebay, it literally can't be that expensive to make shift from a dvd to a cheap pen drive and it would be a really welcome upgrade.

[Maxinfamily]

Physical format doesnt have future at all. They will last in consoles and TV series/movies as long as the "older generations" last. Most of them havent get used to the digital format and most of those population never will. So the physical format exists as a marketing selling strategy and because they are dirty cheap. They are so outdated... The volume of data is too low (unless you go for blue-ray, which increases costs and requires a special reader, etc...) and the reading speeds are so low that they are not usable for gaming, everyone install their games in the hdds because they get lower loading times and stuff...

 

Weve been experiencing a huge growth in the pc gaming segment in the last 5-7 years and if you add to It the increment of the digital sales in the consoles market... Yeah, the DVDs dying date was set a few years ago. 

 

Edit: I forgot to mention that I think that will never exist another physical format since usbs and sd cards are way more expensive than the dvds and that cost increase wouldnt be worth it. YES I know, the Switch uses some sort of SD cards for their games but they are very cheap and they have very slow loading times...

[SpaceGhostC2C]

18 minutes ago, Jamiec1130 said:

 I don't know why the stores have such high markups on things. 

They have much higher costs. They need to pay for a store in a somewhat prime real estate instead of just having a huge, ugly warehouse in the middle of nowhere. And they have to staff it properly, maintain it decent, etc.

That applies to physical vs online stores in general. When you factor in that, in the case of software, online retailers don't even need the warehouse, the difference in costs is much more dramatic. The only staff they need is the guy watching over the server, which sells everything on its own.

 

The only advantage that physical retailers still have is immediate delivery (advising the customer is useless, since people spend an hour talking to the seller, go back home and buy the same in Amazon) for impatient buyers. And that's hindered by the cost and difficulty of having enough stock of everything, which means that many many times you have to wait for things you order at physical stores as well. Again, in the case of software online retailers can service you immediately as well and don't have to worry about stock, so there's nothing really left for physical stores.

Retailers of certain products, like cloth  or shoes, still have the advantage of letting you try things out and see them in person (online pics aren't a good enough approximation yet), but they can still be cursed by the "tray at the store, buy online" pattern if they sell widely available products (say, if you sell Adidas stuff, there's no real reason to buy from you if the same can be obtained $0.01 cheaper online, unless delivery time matters and you happen to have the right size in stock).

 

It's mostly a tale of more efficient arrangements replacing less efficient ones.

[Aytex]

Good...

Down the same path as retail stores..

[Zodiark1593]

Provided Gamestop can allow download of Steam/GoG games to a flash drive, I think they'd still have some future in parts where Internet connection for most people is sluggish at best. 

[Guest]

Physical media will still be relevant as long as shitty ISPs such as AT&T are still around. They still have their uses. I agree, it is dying though. Physical media can still have its benefits, but it's generally so annoying if it's an optical disc. I don't really have an issue with flash drives.