14 DAY TRIAL // Best Buy is breaking new ground when it comes to how it chooses to distribute videogames. The company is probably seeing the threat that digital downloads could become and is thinking of innovating so that it can maintain its business.
For example, some airports are set to receive vending machines offering those interested Nintendo DS handhelds and games for the Nintendo made device. Ars Technica has spotted the vending machine at the Atlanta International Airport and others are set to receive it in the coming weeks. The prices posted are the same as those charged in any Best Buy brick and mortar store and there are quite a few games players can choose from, like Mario Kart DS, Brain Age 2 or Guitar Hero: On Tour.
Basically, before a long and probably boring flight, anyone can use one of the vending machines from Best Buy in order to stock up on videogames that they can play and those who don't have a DS yet can also get their hands on the console. The move is brilliant because it provides videogames and consoles right in the place where most people would not be expecting to find them and where a lot of travelers feel the need to take advantage of them.
Nintendo probably has an exclusive deal with Best Buy regarding the vending machines as no PlayStation Portable games were in sight. It's not clear whether Sony would also be interested in selling its console and games through vending machines in airports or whether the only Best Buy automatons would be loaded with Nintendo products.
The day when an Xbox 360 or a PlayStation 3 is available at a vending machine is probably drawing near. And there could be a lot of people interested in getting their games quickly and without any fuss from a vending machine, bypassing unnecessary and sometimes annoying human contacts.