Wal-Mart to accept video game trade-ins

Bentonville, Ark. -- Starting Wednesday, March 26, Wal-Mart customers will be able to trade in their video games and apply the value immediately toward the purchase of anything sold at Walmart and Sam’s Club, both in stores and online. The traded-in games will then be sent to be refurbished and made available for purchase in like-new condition at a reduced price.



The program will work as follows:



• Customers bring their working video games, in the original packaging, to the electronics department.



• Associates scan the UPC code on the case and evaluate the game for obvious damage such as deep scratches or cracks.



• The customer is then provided with a trade-in value for each game to accept.



• The total value accepted by the customer is awarded immediately and can be applied at checkout in a Wal-Mart store or Sam’s Club, or online at Walmart.com or SamsClub.com.



Available at more than 3,100 Wal-Mart stores nationwide, the new trade-in service will accept thousands of games for popular consoles like the Sony PlayStation3 and Microsoft Xbox 360. Trade-in value will vary.



“Gaming continues to be an important business for us and we’re actively taking aim at the $2 billion pre-owned video game opportunity,” said Duncan Mac Naughton, chief merchandising and marketing officer for Walmart U.S. “When we disrupt markets and compete, our customer wins. They’ll save money on video games and have the flexibility to spend it however they want.”