Could Xbox Live Buy and Sell Used Digital Games in the Fufure?

When deciding to play a video game there are far more choices today than there were when I was a child. Not only are there multiple consoles and handheld games but now there are all sorts of games that can be played online. Playing video games online has become so popular that many experts in the video game industry believe that digital games will become very popular. Digital video games are games that can be downloaded and the user won't even need a copy of the game sent to them in a box.

It's easy to see the positives of digital gaming. Every time I search for something in my desk drawer I have to search through discs and discs of computer games. For console users there has to be somewhere to store the case that each video game comes in. Simply downloading a game and having it stored on a computer or a console's hard drive is a great solution right?

There's one major problem with this thinking. Video games are expensive. Not everybody can afford to buy every video game they want. Gamers, understanding how expensive games are, help each other out by allowing their friends to borrow games. Other gamers will go to Gamespot or an online store like Amazon and sell their used games. These common exercises only occur with physical games. There is no way to trade or borrow or sell digital games. At least not yet.

There is some talk that Xbox Live could be the first to introduce a way for gamers to gain something from a digital game that they are done playing. In this scenario it's not so much about letting your friend borrow a game than it is selling a used game at a reduced price. For example if a gamer has completed a game they could sell the used digital copy on Xbox Live for a discounted price and then Xbox Live and the user would split the amount of money made from the transaction.

Another similar ability that Microsoft could implement with Xbox Live is an online video game rental service. There is a major lack of good video game rental services and whoever is the first to rent games digitally is going to take a huge step forward. If Microsoft could use the same technology to figure out how to let someone rent a video game for a day then Xbox Live could possibly become a better online service than Playstation Network.