Pachter: “UK games retail market is a joke”

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Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has deemed the games retail market within the United Kingdom as “a joke.”

Such comments arrive after a tumultuous year in which GAME, Blockbuster and HMV have all entered administration.

“The UK games retail market is a joke, with retailers pricing below cost to drive traffic,” Pachter explained to Digital Spy. “That’s great for consumers, but retailers can’t make any money on games, hence the bankruptcies of GAME, HMV and Blockbuster, and the refusal of GameStop to expand into the market.”

What he says holds truth, with specialist retailers failing to successfully compete with supermarket chains that undercut prices just to increase in-store footfall.

He continues, “If all retailers go broke, or if games are dominated by mass merchants like Dixons, gamers are ultimately going to get fewer selections. The absence of GameStop and the demise of GAME limits the ability of consumers to trade in used games, depriving many of credits that can be used to purchase new games.

“Retail needs to make money to exist, and games retail in the UK doesn’t make money.”

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