Best Buy Adds Trade-in Program

AUG. 26, 2010 • Despite game publishers intent on discouraging purchasers of used titles by charging for DLC, Best Buy Stores took its online game trade-in program to 600 retail locations. The retailer will roll the program to the remaining 489 stores by October. In related news, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled that the First Sale Doctrine that permits legitimate owners of copies of copyrighted works to resell those copies is unava.....

Tesco Ends Used Game Trial

AUG. 20, 2010 • Retail giant Tesco ended its used game trial and extended the service to each of its stores in the United Kingdom.  At least 60 locations are accepting pre-owned games in their entertainment departments. The retailer took out newspaper advertisements offering £12 ($19) for 2010 FIFA W.....

Foxconn Goes Retail

JULY 27, 2010 • According to the Xinhua news service, Guangdong-based Foxconn Technology Group is negotiating  with the government of Henan province in central China to open more than 2,000 chain stores. The technology manufacturer that produces everything from iPhones to Xbox 360s, is .....
Analysis: Gaikai Explained

Analysis: Gaikai Explained

JULY 20, 2010 • Since the March 2009 GDC announcement of the new OnLive service there has been a great deal of talk about what the potential is for high-performance cloud-based gaming services. At a high-end level a cloud-based service is designed to allow consumers to execute high-performance game applications with very low client-side performance requirements. In other words, a consumer can play a high-powered game without n.....

Free WiFi at Starbucks

JULY 1, 2010 • Following in the footsteps of McDonalds earlier this year, Starbucks made AT&T wireless access free in all of its locations. The coffee purveyor used to charge for wireless connections, but sees the move as a competitive advantage. While som.....