Blockbuster adds videogame, console sales
Move capitalizes on GTA IV, Mario Kart launches
By Jennifer Netherby -- Video Business, 4/28/2008
APRIL 28 | Within a day of two of the hottest games of the year due in stores, Blockbuster will begin selling videogames and game consoles in stores across the country as part of an effort to expand its game business.
Starting today, all U.S. corporate-owned stores will sell videogames, hardware and accessories for the Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS platforms. Blockbuster said it also will begin offering a broader array of rental games in greater depth than before.
Blockbuster has already been selling games and consoles in its 400 Game Rush locations, a spokeswoman said. Today’s move adds game-related sales to its corporate Blockbuster stores, which number about 4,900 in the U.S.
The expansion comes a day before Rockstar Games’ controversial Grand Theft Auto IV and a day after Nintendo Wii’s Mario Kart hit the market, both expected to be huge sellers. Blockbuster said it will carry both on its new release wall in its game section.
To lure in gamers, Blockbuster will offer a special Sony PS3 movie and game bundle. For $499, consumers get a 40GB PS3 console, an HDMI cable, a copy of Spider-Man 3 on Blu-ray, the Transformers PS3 game and a 12-week Blockbuster rental card for one free PS3 or Blu-ray rental a week.
“We’re committed to offering a full assortment of everything gamers want in our stores,” Blockbuster VP of games merchandising Rod Murray said in a statement announcing the new sections.
The game expansion is the latest move by Blockbuster to revamp its store business. Last week, the company showed off new concept stores to the Dallas Morning News in Blockbuster’s hometown that test new ways of delivering movies to customers.
Some test stores open early to see whether people want to rent movies on their way to work, others sell cappuccinos and coffee drinks, some have tech sections selling big-screen TVs and some have a play area for kids.
