Why is renting games legal?

[Dodece]

Illegality aside the debate about rentals and used sales always sidesteps one particular issue. The reality is without an official venue the gaming enthusiasts had already established their own forms of networking to accomplish these same goals. Which could not be regulated, and generated no profit for the companies at all.

I think we often forget given the ease of rentals and reselling that before either we had another option. That option was the communal circle. For those too young to be fluent in how this works. Before renting was common, or before stores that sold used games was common. Gamers just formed their own networks, to lend, trade, or buy games. Sometimes we went so far as to agree as to who was going to buy which game.

Hell I would lend out a game to get it back a couple months later after half a dozen other people had lent it down the line. I could lend from people I did not even directly know, and it was not uncommon for me to have half a dozen lent games out while I had half a dozen borrowed games in my hands. Anyone who broke a game simply provided a substitute of equal value. Surprisingly it all worked perfectly well, because nobody wanted to get ragged for not giving a game back. Which basically meant nobody else would lend them any games.

So what I am pointing at is that even if renting and resales were made illegal. The gamer has proven in the past with a little community spirit they can easily bypass any such laws. Say they cannot rent then they just say they are lending. Say they cannot sell, and they will say they are just trading. Give them incentive to function as a group, and they will function as a group. Then you get what happened in my neighborhood growing up. Everyone started to plan their purchases so as not to purchase what the other guy was getting.

By the way the least traded games were Zelda and Super Mario Bros. The most traded games were Spy Hunter, and 1942. It was a very good day when someone offered to straight up trade a Zelda for any other game straight up. Everyone who didn't have Zelda wanted to borrow it. Then for those that wanted to trade you Spy Hunter you always said you better be giving me a two for, because that ain't getting you shit. Before it was all said and done. I had three or four copies of that game. Spy Hunter always had to be traded with something else.