The gaming community is facing a future of significantly more expensive hobby with the possible implementation of the trade tariff for video games. This may initially start from the US, but other countries might follow suit, making the consoles and the games a bit more pricey.
Based from a recent report from Polygon, the possibility of a huge price increase with video game products such as titles for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and physical copies for the PC is very high. This is due to the newly assigned U.S president's suggestion of implementing trade tariffs.
The tariff, according to the description, is a tax imposed for any goods or services, which are imported from outside the country that it will be purchased or will be rendered. This makes such items significantly more expensive compared to those that are manufactured from within the country's borders.
If anything, Sony and Microsoft's consoles will be heavily impacted due to most games coming from outside the U.S. There are numerous games manufactured and created locally, but the number of titles coming from Japan and other neighboring countries easily dwarf this.
This would also be a huge deal breaker, especially with the Japan-based company, Nintendo and it upcoming Nintendo Switch console. Sales may or may not be heavily affected depending on how much impact, the tax will hit the units along with the games.
As also reported at VG247, there's still no clear cut on how much, the potential trade tariff will affect the prices. Still, Entertainment Software Association (ESA) is already in the works to counteract the possible effects of the policy.
While it may look simple on the surface, trade tariffs like this, especially when imposed with a very big business like video gaming, could potentially ignite a trade war. This will happen when other countries impose tariffs against U.S products, limiting consumer purchases.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
