Tag Archives: rentals

The NPD Group has revealed that 90 percent of all new and used console sales, add-ons, song packs and rentals were made from physical retail or rental services during the third-quarter of 2009.

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The Belgian Entertainment Association has clarified reports that game rentals are to be banned in Belgium next month, saying that the issue isn’t with retailers offering games to rent, rather than with retailers buying games for sale then renting them out.

“What’s happening is that video rental stores are declining in popularity, and because of this those stores began to buy retail copies of games and put them up for rent. I can’t think of any country that would allow this. Rental outlets need publisher permission to rent out games, and need to buy them wholesale, just like with films,” Olivier Maeterlinck, Managing Director of the Belgian Entertainment Association, told Edge.

“The point is that stores can still put out rental copies. They just have to get permission to do so. In most countries a rental point must get permission for renting out. We are no longer any different to this system, but that doesn’t mean we are ‘banning’ game rentals.”

Phew. Glad that’s cleared up.

According to this De Standaard piece, games rentals will be banned in Belgium as of December 1.

Gamemania – the largest specialist game retailer in Belgium – says in the piece that rentals make up 10 percent of its revenue.

Apparently the practice has always been illegal in the country, but has been tolerated until now.

No longer. Thanks, NeoGAF.