Digital distribution of games doesn’t hurt traditional retail outlet sales – that’s the message Steam platform holder Valve Software told assembled media journalists at a briefing in its Seattle offices today. The US independent developer, responsible for games like Half-Life and Portal, also runs the popular Steam digital distribution service, …

We asked Jonathan Hayes what he thought was the winning aspect behind HMV’s triumph in the MCV awards this year. He explains: I’d say it was a combination of factors, but ultimately they all added up to the same thing – working closely with our key strategic partners to make …

After John Terry’s heartbreaking slip-up in last night’s Champions League final, it looks as though Chelsea Manager Avram Grant will soon be scouting for a job outside of the cosy surroundings of SW11. Your boss might not be as unforgiving as Roman Abramovich, but that doesn’t mean that now isn’t …

Video games saved British retail’s blushes in April – with High Street sales falling by less than expected thanks to a consumer ‘rush’ to buy interactive entertainment. According to The Office for National Statistics, overall retail sales volumes fell for the second straight month in April, down 0.2 per cent …

MCV is this week rolling out the UK games industry’s first ever dedicated online retail forum and High Street news and information resource. The new Retail Biz section of MCVUK.com is now live and offers a trade-only forum where retailers and other interested members of the games industry can talk …

President of Sony Computer Entertainment Kaz Hirai has told MCV that the platform holder believes High Street games retail will still have a major role to play in the future. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe boss Ray Maguire recently told an ELSPA conference that Sony expected digital distribution would make up …

Independent retailers across the UK are finding refuge online, in order to offset pressure from supermarket price cutting, digital downloads and piracy. Alongside an increased online presence, many independents are focusing on their customer service, their range of retro software and console repair services, allowing them to grow in the …

GAMESCom organisers insist that the German games fair fits in with the trade’s preparations for Christmas, despite criticism over its timing. Earlier in the year the German trade association Bundesverband Interaktive Unterhaltungssoftware (BIU) and Cologne’s trade fair business Koelnmesse announced that GAMESCom will kick off in September 2009, which drew …

A Conservative MP has claimed that laws preventing retailers supplying youngsters with violent video games are not strict enough – and said that they are ‘damaging children’. Tory MP David Ruffley claims to have ‘uncovered new research’ which shows that not a single retailer has received a caution for selling …

Financial doom and gloom may be building elsewhere, but the games industry is bucking all the trends as Wii Fit and GTA IV look set to push retail sales up to the 100m mark this week. In the past week, ChartTrack confirmed that Wii Fit has already racked up 16m …