Minneapolis — Best Buy will begin buying and selling used video games this week as part of a multi-store test in Texas.
According to a blog post by Best Buy chief marketing officer Barry Judge, several stores in Dallas and Austin have begun selling used games and have installed automated kiosks that can accept used titles. Consumers can insert their games into the kiosk, which will scan them for functionality and issue vouchers that can be immediately redeemed for Best Buy gift cards.
Some of the kiosks, which are supplied by Columbus, Ohio-based E-Play, will also dispense games and DVDs for rent. Walmart began testing a similar self-serve program with E-Play in 77 New England stores last month, according to TWICE sister publication Video Business. The machines allow users to exchange Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox and Sony PlayStation games for credit on their credit cards, and can also dispense $1-a-night DVD rentals.
“We’re excited about this test, especially because we know how deeply passionate our customers and our employees are about gaming, movies and entertainment overall,” Judge wrote. “And the trade-in and used value propositions will give those passionate customers even more choice and value at Best Buy.”
Best Buy hopes to tap into the popular video game trade-in market while boosting sales of new products — a model that was successfully developed by GameStop and later emulated by RadioShack. The latter accepts used cellphones, MP3 players, digital cameras and other devices in addition to gaming hardware and software in exchange for RadioShack gift cards.
