GameFly

Infobox_Company
company_name=GameFly, Inc.
company_logo=
company_type=Private
company_slogan=
foundation=2002
location=Los Angeles, California
key_people=David Hodess, CEO & President
Sean Spector, Co-Founder and VP of Business Development and Marketing
Jung Suh, Co-Founder and VP of Content and Strategic Alliances
num_employees=Unknown
industry=Rental
products=Video games for video game consoles
revenue=Unknown
homepage= [http://www.GameFly.com GameFly.com]

GameFly is an American online video game rental subscription service that specializes in providing games for game consoles and handheld game consoles.

Similar to the DVD rental subscription service Netflix, GameFly sends games to subscribers via the United States Postal Service in re-mailable, pre-paid mailers (non-US residents are ineligible for the service, as GameFly does not ship overseas). The subscriber then can keep the games for as long as desired while paying the monthly fee, although the number of games is limited by the type of subscription plan chosen by the subscriber. Additionally, the user can create a , known as the "GameQ", of up to 50 games. Upon returning the game to a GameFly distribution center, GameFly automatically ships out the next game in the "GameQ", making the process cyclical for as long as the user is a subscriber and updates his or her "GameQ". Customers typically expect delivery of their requested games within 2-5 days of shipment. If the received game disc or cartridge is damaged or unplayable for some reason, or if the wrong game was received, the customer can return it for a replacement or have the next item in their rental queue sent instead.

Subscribers can also purchase selected pre-played games at a reduced price should they choose to keep the game, in which case the jacket and instruction booklet will be subsequently mailed to them. Non-subscribers may also buy games, though not at a discounted price afforded to subscribers.

The process is all managed online, where the user must provide a credit card as a form of payment and means of verification.

Also, retail outlets such as Best Buy offered "pre-paid" versions of GameFly for new subscribers (where they pay one month for two months worth of service), and gift certificates can be sent to friends and family -- although these require the people receiving the "pre-paid" pack or gift certificate to furnish a credit card as a means of verification and incurring future charges.

History

In mid 2002, Sean and Jung partnered with Founding CEO Toby Lenk to start GameFly. GameFly later received venture capital funding from Sequoia Capital. [cite web|url=http://www.sequoiacap.com/company/gamefly/|title=Sequoia Capital funds GameFly]

Rental offerings

Launched on September 8, 2002, GameFly offered 1000 titles for the Sony PlayStation 2, Microsoft Xbox, and the Nintendo GameCube. A few months after launch, GameFly began renting Game Boy Advance games in addition to disc-based games. In November 2004, GameFly added Nintendo DS games to rent. On March 21, 2005, GameFly added Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) games to their offerings, and near the end of April 2005, GameFly also added UMD movies. [http://www.gamefly.com/press/pr_20050321.asp?pg=4&prn=1]

GameFly also began offering Xbox 360 titles prior to the launch of the console in November 2005. On July 6th, 2006, Gamefly offered games for Nintendo's Wii and Sony's PlayStation 3.

GameFly does not support older game systems, such as the Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64, Super Nintendo, PlayStation, or the Dreamcast. They also do not plan on adding PC games to its catalog due to legal issues involving the requirement to install PC games onto the owner's hard drive. [http://gamefly.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/gamefly.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=62&p_created=1116916457&p_sid=dSQrA3Xh&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD0xMDgmcF9wcm9kcz0mcF9jYXRzPSZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PSZwX3NlYXJjaF90eXBlPWFuc3dlcnMuc2VhcmNoX25sJnBfcGFnZT0y&p_li=&p_topview=1]

Service plans

GameFly offers four different plans, depending on how many games are rented at a time. All plans are for unlimited games, meaning that the user is not charged on a per-game basis, but on a monthly basis.

# One game out at a time costs $15.95 per month.
# Two games out at a time costs $22.95 per month (this is the most popular and promoted plan).
# The three game out at a time plan, which is only available to eligible users in good standing for a duration of 60 days, costs $29.95 per month.
# The four game plan, which is only available to eligible users in good standing for about 60 days as well, costs $36.95 per month.

Plans are priced using US dollars and sales tax is charged in most states.

GameFly provides email service. Email customer service is available seven days a week with a 24 to 48 hour response window.

Criticism

GameFly has received criticism in the past due to the company having only one distribution center, in California. As of April, 2007 GameFly has opened a second distribution center located in Pittsburgh. As of December 2007, GameFly has opened a third distribution center located in Tampa. In May 2008, Gamefly announced that a fourth shipping center had opened in Austin, TX.

Wait times may be reduced by using GameFly's "FastReturn" program, in which customers return a game in the mail, the U.S. Postal Service scans the return and sends a confirmation to GameFly, and GameFly then sends the next available game in the customer's queue before they have received the game in their warehouse. This service is not available in all cities because some post offices don't have the proper equipment to transmit scanned data to GameFly.

In the game rental services market, availability of games has been thought to be an issue. It has been theorized that after the holiday season, for example, a drastic increase in the number of sign-ups sometimes causes a large number of games to be described as either "low" or "very low" availability. Fact|date=April 2007 This can cause temporary delays in a subscriber's service, but the first game in a subscriber's queue will be sent as soon as its status changes to "available."

GameFly currently operates out of four distribution centers (Los Angeles; Tampa; Pittsburgh; and Austin). It is currently unknown what states the Tampa warehouse distributes to besides Florida itself. While the California distribution center ships to all fifty states, Pittsburgh's center only currently ships to the following twenty-two locations:
*Connecticut
*Delaware
*Florida
*Georgia
*Illinois
*Indiana
*Kentucky
*Massachusetts
*Maryland
*Maine
*Michigan
*North Carolina
*New Hampshire
*New Jersey
*New York
*Ohio
*Pennsylvania
*Rhode Island
*Tennessee
*Virginia
*Vermont
*Washington, D.C.
*West Virginia

GameFly has stated that more states will be added in the future. [cite web|url=http://gamefly.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/gamefly.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=174&p_created=1178574019&p_sid=GxyHZQGi&p_accessibility=0&p_lva=37&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MiZwX3Byb2RzPSZwX2NhdHM9MCZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PSZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PWRpc3RyaWJ1dGlvbg**&p_li=&p_topview=1|title=Frequently Asked Questions|accessdate=2007-07-17|publisher=Gamefly.com]

Subscribers often complain of games being delivered in an unplayable state due to scratches on the disc surface and other issues. Questions have been raised about their quality control process between renters.Fact|date=August 2008

See also

*
* Video game
* Netflix
* Gottaplay
* Online DVD rental

References

External links

* [http://www.gamefly.com GameFly's Official Site]
* [http://www.facebook.com/gamefly GameFly's Fan Page on Facebook]
* [http://www.gamespot.com/news/6157008.html Interview with GameFly co-founder, Sean Spector]
* [http://rentgamesonline.net/game-fly-video-game-rentals/ Independent Review of the GameFly Service]