GAME follows Amazon's lead with launch of its own 'Marketplace'
Third-party sellers have become a huge part of the Amazon experience, offering customers a wide variety of products at knock-down prices. Video games are part of that equation, which is inevitably pulling business away from specialised UK retailers such as GAME. In response, the latter is launching a direct competitor today called GAME Marketplace, which gives independent merchants the chance to sell video games and other related merchandise through the GAME website. At launch, this includes clothes, smartphones, movies, comic books and a ton of other paraphernalia. Video games do feature, but they're mostly older titles and retro classics that aren't going to affect GAME's core business.
GAME has roughly 40 sellers using the platform, and newcomers will have to apply before they can start selling their wares on the site. This should ensure some level of quality and accountability, at least until the marketplace has established a strong reputation among gamers. It's another bold move from a retailer that was on the brink of extinction just a few years ago; earlier this month GAME spent £20 million to acquire Multiplay, a British video game company that specialises in live events, online hosting and eSports. Given that GAME reported a mostly flat Christmas, both the deal and today's Marketplace launch shows its willingness to expand the business and try new ideas to stay out of financial trouble.
