It has become popular to say that the gaming industry has become recession-proof, simply because the overall sales for 2008 are up year over year…but those numbers only tell part of the story. Other sources are starting to report some troubling trends in gaming sales; not the least of which is the plummeting price of used games. These trends could lead to some troubling times for gaming in 2009.
Encamped along the aisles of the massive Zhongguancun Kemao Electronics Market in Beijing are many people like Li Zhongxin, of the Beijing Xinyu Lianhe Telecom Equipment Co. Li sits atop a plastic stool in front of his open-air stall on the third floor, scanning the throngs of shoppers for would-be customers. There’s no sign of Apple’s iPhone among the thicket of cellphones, handset covers, and other accessories hung on shelves and inside the waist-high glass display case, but he’ll be glad to show you one.
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