News HMV: Games to trump music sales

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/2008/09/10/hmv-games-to-trump-music-sales/1

HMV has been devoting increasing amounts of shop space to selling games lately as it believes that game sales will soon trump music sales.

 

I've not been into a HMV for some time now, but last time I was there their games were usually ~£10 more than Game.. Why would anyone shop there for games?

 

One of the HMVs here in Nottingham is all but useless for PC gaming having a single 5' section of shelving at the end of the gaming section with very little distinction regarding new releases and games charts. Pretty much everything else is crammed in as tightly as possible. Needless to say I have given up looking in there if there is anything I am after.

 

I've bought a few games of HMV online, they are in some cases cheaper than play. But the store is useless.

 

why would anyone shop there for anything? There was a big fuss a year or two ago about HMV lowering prices because they were being undercut by online stores - but nothing was mentioned about the fact that HMV CDs are £15-£20 compared to £5-£10 online at cdwow, play.com). Worst example was when I was looking for a particular CD; in HMV it was £20, online it was a fiver for the same damn album. The main issue behind this is the "fall then rise" nature of HMVs CD prices - they're released at a high price (in my opinion and experience at a 25% price mark-up over everywhere else), fall when in the charts (to normal release prices, tenner a CD maybe), then rise again, maybe fall on promotion later, then rise and settle at £15, sometimes £20. EVERYWHERE else, old CDs go down in price as they get older. As they should do. A album that's over 5 years old should not cost £20 now!

Everything in HMV is overpriced. Even the "3 for £20" DVD offers are undercut by online where you could get each DVD individually for around a fiver.

 

At the HMV where I live , which is opposite GAME, things are a little different. Their games are mostly full price, but often when a new game comes out it is a special deal rate of £2-3 cheaper than Game across the road. Not always.. but often enough to actually go check HMV first.
The other thing is that HMV in my town (and Canary Wharf in London) no longer stocks any PC games at all now. Both used to. Its console all the way now for HMV.

But for CD's and DVD's HMV is always overpriced (compared to Tesco and Online)... but if you want it there and then... you pay the price.

I actually bought my PS3 from Zavvi (the old virgin) as they were the only store that let me swap out games from the bundle for ones I actually wanted. I like these guys (Milton Keynes is the nearest one to me).

 

I like HMV for the stupid £2 - £5 DVD sales and that's about it.

 

An important feature of online CD and DVD sales is the zero VAT on orders under £18 from Jersey, where everybody has now based, and HMV Online are very competitive with the other online shops in those areas, and usually much lower than HMV High Street.

On the other hand, many games are over £18 so the playing field is slightly flatter, but running costs are always going to be much higher on the High Street, putting the price back up. Maybe off-line games sales are to punters not grown up enough to have a credit card, as well as the want-it-now brigade. Plus the shops are somewhere to hang out, and making that purchase scores points, no?

 

Those kinds of sales are a great way to make a daunting DVD collection.

 

to be honest... i don't think anyone pays for music anymore. it's kind of sad really. lets just hope pc gaming (which HMV barely caters to) doesn't get like that.