NVIDIA: 'Games can drive hardware sales'

Bundling the latest games titles with new hardware has the ability to dramatically improve sales says Nvidia.
The PC components manufacturer, which specialises in high-end gaming graphics cards, recognised the trend following on from its recent ‘Gear up, Game on’ promotion which bundled its newest graphics cards with highly anticipated new releases such asBorderlands 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Assassins Creed III.
Nvidia based the initiative on recent statistics released by digital games distributor Steam, which found that 36 million gamers around the world lack the hardware to meet the recommended specification for the year’s biggest releases.
Matt Wright, consumer sales manager at Nvidia, believes that since gamers largely upgrade their system’s hardware to play the latest titles, the firm could incentivise the experience in order to offer benefits for both parties.
“The advantage of bundling games software with hardware is twofold; we see a tangible increase in hardware sales, not only for Nvidia but for multiple layers of the channel, and we provide the gamer with the latest games together with the hardware that gives them the best performance.”
Both distributors and resellers from within the channel have echoed this sentiment, recording a jump in sales for their hardware bundles amongst other benefits.
Jon Atherton, group VP at Entatech, said: “We have seen an increase in sales and it has opened up new opportunities for us.”
“Nvidia’s recent Assassin’s Creed III bundle capitalised on one of the most eagerly anticipated games of the winter. Many gamers were looking to pick up the game and it drove sales for many of Nvidia’s Add-In-Card partners,” Atherton continued.
Reseller Dino PC also celebrated the scheme, which boosted its sales throughout the seasonal period. Managing director Vladimir Kuznetsov said: “During the festive season many of our customers were purchasing PCs as gifts, so a bundled game was the ideal giveaway to entice customers.”
“Ultimately, we see a lot more sales for our gaming systems as the custom-built PC business is already very competitive, so the bonus bundled game worth £30-£40 can clinch the deal,” the MD continued.
Wright also believes that the success of the trend has had a strong effect through the channel as an increasing number of resellers are interested in participating in the scheme after watching their competitors reap in the benefits.
By bundling the newest hardware with the month’s hottest release, Nvidia has the ability to make its products stand out from the crowd and increase their appeal to possible customers.

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