GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires • Hacker News Board

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#31

Post by iso1631 » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 3:56 PM UTC

joekrill wrote: post #28

pratik661 wrote: post #5

I was wondering if GameStop would use their once in a lifetime overpriced valuation to raise money to invest in a game streaming platform (ie Netflix for games).

Clearly not everyone thinks that's the state of affairs. Roaring Kitty has clearly done quite a bit of research and thinks GME is undervalued. And if you believe that many of the folks on /r/wallstreetbets are being genuine, then they feel similarly. Time will tell. But there's certainly no guarantee that this is a "once in a lifetime overpriced valuation".

Common sense puts it at $20

Optimistic might be $90

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#32

Post by newsclues » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 3:57 PM UTC

criddell wrote: post #26

What is GameStop going to be five years from now when digital distribution is the only way video games are sold? I can't imagine selling game-related tchotchkes is a very good business. What else is there?

Community, through competition.

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#33

Post by kerng » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 3:59 PM UTC

criddell wrote: post #26

What is GameStop going to be five years from now when digital distribution is the only way video games are sold? I can't imagine selling game-related tchotchkes is a very good business. What else is there?

Become a game studio, with live events and community

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#34

Post by joekrill » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:00 PM UTC

criddell wrote: post #26

What is GameStop going to be five years from now when digital distribution is the only way video games are sold? I can't imagine selling game-related tchotchkes is a very good business. What else is there?

The guy that's arguably the impetus behind this whole GME thing gives a compelling story in a 5 minute youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alntJzg0Um4

* I don't own GME or have an interest in this whole thing one way or the other, nor do I have an opinion on Roaring Kitty's research. I just find this all very interesting to follow.

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#35

Post by volta83 » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:00 PM UTC

theorymeltfool wrote: post #23

I'm curious if the HFs that shorted Gamestop, are also profiting off of the wild swings by Redditors who have now lost hundreds of thousands of dollars. They could easily swing-trade this stock all the way down, using massive buy/sell orders to drive the price. If Melvin Capital isn't bankrupt after all of this, there might just be A LOT of broke redditors who cashed in their lifesavings on this gamble.

I see often stated as a fact that "a lot of retail investors from WSB bough a lot of GME shares", but I never see any proof about any of this.

What's the proof that any retail investor actually bought GME?

How many retail investors actually bought GME?

How much money did they win or loose?

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#36

Post by musingsole » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:01 PM UTC

iso1631 wrote: post #29

criddell wrote: post #26

What is GameStop going to be five years from now when digital distribution is the only way video games are sold? I can't imagine selling game-related tchotchkes is a very good business. What else is there?

Rebuilding into a place for gamers to congregate in person rather than shout at anonymous trolls on the internet? They've got the space, and after 18 months of limited social contact it could be an opportunity

I share your thoughts but then thinking more on it made me realize how drastically different that business model would have to be. Retail is all about getting a customer to that cash register and then out the door with a decent chance of coming again for something similar.

A hangout spot...a Gamestop-branded Dave and Busters or other video game lounge makes a lot of sense if you have the space. But the business reasoning is backwards: get people in and get them in a mood where they'll buy trickle-goods like food/drink, time on a given display...And all the while you suddenly have to contend with the culture of your patrons a lot more...directly. A snotty kid being brat in your store eventually leaves and is forgotten. In this new model, that kid wants to stay in your store a lot longer and worse will try to interact with the other patrons (that being the point of your store, after all).

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#37

Post by Corrado » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:02 PM UTC

I was thinking recently about how GameStop might pivot. They have retail locations, which a lot of companies don't, so they should take advantage of that.

Some examples I have thought of include: * put 3D printers in the stores and sell custom objects based off of your gamer profile.

* convert the stores into a gamer bar and show eSports tournaments.

* host LAN parties or move into tabletop games

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#38

Post by throwaway4good » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:02 PM UTC

First order of business for their new CTO - fix the website:

   Access Denied
   You don't have permission to access "http://www.gamestop.com/" on this server.
   Reference #18.8ba72917.1612368077.10f974bd

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#39

Post by ekanes » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:04 PM UTC

SpicyLemonZest wrote: post #16

I’m still not exactly optimistic for their chances, but I guess Netflix does show these kinds of tech pivots can work. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.

Yes, but Netflix famously saw their pivot coming from the very start. They didn't name the company MoviesByMail.com -- they named the company for the future wave they intended to hit.

Re: GameStop appoints chief technology officer and two additional executive hires

#40

Post by crazygringo » Wed, Feb 03, 2021, 4:05 PM UTC

LargeWu wrote: post #11

pratik661 wrote: post #5

I was wondering if GameStop would use their once in a lifetime overpriced valuation to raise money to invest in a game streaming platform (ie Netflix for games).

Unless they are issuing new stock, or selling stock that they hold, I don't really see how its valuation helps the company. Likely it's very good for their execs, though...

Yes it would absolutely be issuing new stock.

However I'm actually not sure how quickly companies can do that. It has to be done by the board. Can they just hold an emergency meeting and authorize it within hours? Or is it the kind of thing that requires certain approvals which require weeks or months?

It could also be a huge PR backfire. If the stock then drops back down, then they could be accused of taking advantage of naive redditors -- not that that's necessarily true, but there's definitely risk of it. I mean, is that what a "responsible" public company is supposed to do?