Report Says GameStop Is The Latest To Join This Controversial Trend
In an attempt to keep the company relevant, GameStop is continuing its attempts to hop on the latest trends in both video games and technology. There are multiple movies in the works about GameStop's 2021 stock market drama, and now the company is aiming to get involved with NFTs and crypto currency. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, GameStop has hired a number of new employees to help develop its own NFT marketplace, through which people could exchange NFTs and digital items, ultimately giving GameStop a cut of the sales.
As described by Investopedia, NFTs are "cryptographic assets on a blockchain with unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from each other. Unlike cryptocurrencies, they cannot be traded or exchanged at equivalency." This makes each item "unique" and scarce, giving a value to the digital item that would not be present without the blockchain. However, NFTs have been the subject of great backlash due to the possible environmental impact of how much energy is used in generating them (per The Verge).
More and more video game companies have either said they support NFTs or plan to implement them in the future, including Square Enix and Konami, much to the dismay of fans. Here's how GameStop plans to get in on the trend.
Why GameStop is looking into NFTs and crypto
According to the report from The Wall Street Journal, GameStop is in talks to sign agreements with at least two cryptocurrency companies. The details of the agreements are unknown, but it could see cryptocurrency being used to purchase goods from GameStop stores or in the company's potential NFT marketplace when it launches. The current plans are for the marketplace to launch sometime late in 2022.
At the moment, there are still a number of questions regarding the new division. It's unclear from the report if GameStop is working with any video game companies to help sell in-game NFTs, nor do fans know if they can expect any retro-themed NFTs to go with the company's renewed interest in used games. Kotaku reached out to GameStop for comments on its plans for NFTs and cryptocurrency, but has yet to receive a response.
GameStop was on a downward slope before the meme stock incident in early 2021, during which time an internet community rallied together to purchase company stock because they believed it to be undervalued. This gave GameStop the necessary capital to get back on its feet. In the months since, the company has been looking into new avenues for making money, which has led to GameStop's first steps into the world of crypto.